Auggie and Annie family and home
by Mariposa68
Summary: Auggie and Annie are married and have a little son. Their life as parents also includes explaining the world to a little 3-year old boy.
1. Chapter 1

Family and Home

Auggie swept his cane from the left to the right and enjoyed the sunshine on his face, the chirping birds and the fine summer weather. Annie walked right next to him whilst his 3-year old son Jeremy was holding Annie´s hand. The park was almost crowded on a late Sunday morning. Families and couples were enjoying the first summer weekend some of them even had settled down on the grass for a picnic.

After a while, Jeremy pulled at Annie´s hand, stopped, looked up to her and asked "Mummy, why does Daddy walk with a cane?" Auggie turned his head towards his son, made a few steps into Jeremy´s direction, squatted before the little boy and said "I need my cane to get around. Do you remember that I told you that I am blind?" Jeremy nodded. And Annie said to him "You have to give your Daddy an answer" Jeremy was confused "But I have Daddy given an answer, I just nodded" he protested and pouted. Auggie smiled, but felt a little helpless, too because it was difficult to explain to a 3-year old what it meant to be blind. "Look, I am blind, I cannot see when you are nodding"

"What is blind?" Jeremy asked now. Auggie thought he had found a way to explain to his son what blindness meant and he said "Do you remember that we always switch the lights off when you go to bed?" Jeremy nodded again, but remembered seconds later what Annie had just told him "Yes Daddy and then it is so dark, that I cannot see a thing. And sometimes I am scared" Auggie had now taken the hand of his son and they continued walking. Whilst strolling through the park Auggie explained "So, if you know how it feels, when the lights are off at night, you know what it means to be blind" Again, Jeremy stopped walking and looked up to Auggie and said "But Daddy, how can it be dark for you when the sun is out?" Annie had listened to the dialogue of father and son and before Auggie could answer again she said "Daddy´s eyes are broken, he cannot see the sun, it is like he is walking with the lights off all the time." Now Jeremy understood. He squeezed Auggie´s hand and asked with tears in his eyes "But then you must be scared all the time Daddy, when it is always dark for you" Auggie had heard the change in his son´s voice and knew that the little boy was about to cry. He stopped walking, handed his cane over to Annie, took his son, lifted him up to his own eye level and tried to meet his son´s gaze. He hugged him tightly and said "don´t worry Kiddo, Daddy is not scared, not anymore. This is just the way I am and I am happy with my life even if I cannot see you, the sky or the sun"

Jeremy had snuggled into Auggie´s arms and enjoyed the warm embrace of his Daddy. But then he asked again. "But what is the cane for?" Auggie continued "When you cannot see, you have to feel for things. Do you remember seeing that I feel for the things on the table before I take them? "Yes Daddy" Jeremy replied. "The cane helps me feel, what is in front of me when I walk. When I use it, I will not bump into things and hurt myself". Annie had watched the scene between father and son and was deeply moved. Auggie was a perfect father. He knew how to explain things and that was not always easy. Being 3 years old Jeremy had just come into the "why and how" phase. He had started to ask questions like "Why doesn´t the sun shine at night" or why is milk white?" The typical questions of a child that wanted to explore the world. And every answer to a question led to a new question. Annie was sometimes at her wits end when Jeremy´s why, when and how questions did not stop. Auggie however, had a natural talent to explain things and to satisfy his son´s thirst for answers.

He could not see, but he had is very own way to show the world to his son. Auggie could not see the birds in the garden but he could hear them chirping. He explained to his son how to distinguish the chirps of a robin from that of a blackbird.


	2. Chapter 2

The driver stopped the car in front of the house. Auggie got out and made his way to the door with his cane. The week had been long and not only he, had worked overtime, but also Virginia, the nanny who looked after Jeremy when he and Annie were in Langley. Auggie opened the door with his key, walked along the corridor and put his folded cane on the dresser. Then he made his way into the kitchen when he heard that Annie was already preparing dinner. The Bolognese sauce was bubbling on the stove and Annie just threw some Spaghetti into the boiling water, when Auggie hugged her firmly from behind and placed a kiss on her neck. "Hello Darling. I am so glad that the week is over I am looking forward to the first weekend with you in a long time and I hope we won´t be disturbed." Annie turned around and kissed him. Seconds later Jeremy stormed out of his room. He had noticed that Auggie was back home and ran down the stairs "Daddy, Daddy…!" Auggie turned into the direction of his son, squatted and the little boy ran towards him and right into his arms. Auggie took him, whirled him around and said "Hey champion, Daddy is back."

They all took a seat at the dining table and enjoyed the first dinner together of that week. Given the enormous work load, Auggie had not found any time for his work outs at the gym that week, not even time for a short walk. He had come home late and tired every night. So he decided to talk a walk after a refreshing shower. He needed some fresh air to clear his head. After the shower, Auggie walked to the closet and chose a pair of blue jeans and a light-blue T-shirt. As usual, the Braille clothes tags helped him to make the right choice. He had worn suit and tie all week long and was now longing for some casual and comfortable clothes. Completely dressed, he walked down the stairs and felt for his cane on the dresser in the corridor. But there was nothing. Confused and a bit annoyed he called "Annie do you know where my cane is?" Annie was still busy in the kitchen and was washing the dishes "Your cane? It should be on the dresser as always." And Auggie replied „No, but I am a 100% sure I put it there" Auggie had an excellent memory and he seldom forgot where he had put something. He couldn´t see and had to rely on his memory. Now Annie was a bit confused as well. Both walked into the kitchen that was directly connected to the living room area. Annie looked around and burst into laughter. Now Auggie was even more confused than before "Would you please tell me what is so funny?" he said. Annie had stopped laughing and replied "You won´t guess what your son is doing outside." Auggie got impatient "Come on, tell me" "Jeremy is walking around the garden with a blindfold and with your white cane in his hand. He almost fell into the flower bed"

Now both walked into the garden to check on their kid. When Jeremy heard the voices of his parents he ripped off the blue scarf, that he had used as a blindfold and before Annie could ask further questions, he said" I just wanted to know, what it feels like, to walk with a cane like Daddy does. But that is not so easy." Now Auggie started to laugh, too. He was also a bit happy, that his son wanted to know more about his world. He said" You wanted to know how to get around without seeing?" And Jeremy answered "Yes, Daddy. You said that you have to use a cane to get around in order to avoid obstacles. But that is not so easy." Auggie was deeply touched. "Come here my son" Auggie squatted again and wrapped his arms around the little boy. "I also had to practice a lot with the cane to get around with it, but YOU don't need a cane because you can see." Now Jeremy placed the cane in Auggie´s palm and said "Yes I can see and I am glad that I do not need this cane." Auggie smiled "I am glad, too that you don´t need a cane. It is enough, that I have to use one." And then he added "Would you like to go for a walk with me?" Jeremy looked up to him and said "Oh yes, and can I feed the ducks at the pond?" "Yes, you can do that."

Moments later Auggie and his son walked hand in hand towards the park and Auggie´s messenger bag contained a plastic bag with bread crumbs for the ducks. After a five-minute´s walk father and son reached the park. Auggie found the way to the pond with his cane following the quacking sounds of the ducks. He opened his messenger bag and took out the breadcrumbs. Jeremy was delighted. He threw the breadcrumbs into the water and the ducks approached one after the other to get the crumbs. Some of them started fighting for the bread crumbs and nudged and bit each other. One duck even waddled towards Jeremy and took the bread crumbs out of the little boy´s hand. Auggie listened to the ducks and to his son however, got a little distracted, when suddenly his cell phone beeped and he checked the message he had just received. Seconds later he heard a splashing sound and a scream. Oh my God, he thought. It seemed like Jeremy had fallen into the pond. He quickly put the cell phone back into his bag and swept his cane back and forth to find his son "Jeremy, Jeremy ….!" he called. Auggie got closer and closer to the pond and felt that his shoes were getting wet. He panicked and for the first time in years, he cursed his blindness and wished he could see. "Jeremy, Jeremy…..! Suddenly he heard a voice behind him say "Can I help you Sir?" Auggie was relieved, that someone had noticed how desperate he was. "Yes, please. I am here with my son. He was feeding the ducks and then I heard a splashing sound. He must have fallen into the water." The helpful man looked around and said "I can see him, there he is" The man took off his shoes walked into the water where Jeremy was lying face down. He grabbed the little boy, took him into his arms, carried him out of the water and started to reanimate Jeremy. Auggie´s face had turned pale. He was trembling with fear. Could he forgive himself if something had happened to his son just because he was blind? After a minute he heard the man say "I got him, he is coming back" Jeremy had opened his eyes and was now spitting. He had swallowed a lot of dirty water. Auggie was relieved and started to relax a bit. But he wanted to be sure that everything was alright. He took out his cell phone and dialed the number for emergencies.

Shortly after, an ambulance arrived and took care of the little boy. After fifteen minutes and a thorough check-up the doctor said. "I think that everything is okay with your son, but despite that I would like to keep him in hospital for that night to be sure." Auggie nodded, he was relieved that his son was alive. The paramedics pushed the stretcher into the ambulance car and helped Auggie to get in as well. Auggie cautiously searched for the hand of his son and squeezed it. Jeremy looked at him and asked "Daddy where are we going?" After ten minutes they reached the hospital and Auggie called Annie to tell her what happened. Annie was shocked. Immediately she ran to the garage, got out her car and drove to the hospital. Auggie sat on a bench next to the door of the ER and was fumbling with his folded cane. He always did that when he got stressed and nervous. Annie ran towards her husband, her look full of sorrow "Auggie, Auggie…where is he? Is he okay?" "I think so" Auggie said. He was still pale. After 10 minutes one of the doctors emerged and informed them "Mr. and Mrs. Anderson? Your son is okay. There is nothing to fear. We will keep him for the night and will release him tomorrow." "Thank you Doctor." Annie said with a faint smile. Auggie took her elbow and they followed the doctor to the little boy´s room. The following morning Annie and Auggie picked up their son at the hospital. Jeremy had slept well and the doctors assured them that there was no risk at all to take him home again. During their ride back home Jeremy suddenly asked "Daddy, were you scared when I fell into the water?" Auggie turned in his seat, trying to face his son and answered "Of course, I cannot see you and you did not answer. So I assumed that something happened to you." Jeremy looked up to Auggie and said "I was scared too when I fell. I guess I will never get so close to the water again." Auggie was a bit surprised and with a smile he said "Well, I am glad that you have learned something".


	3. Chapter 3

House and home part 3

Auggie stood on the sidewalk waiting for the beeping sound of the traffic light indicating that the lights were green. Right after the first beep, he was startled. Someone grabbed his arm and tried to drag him across the street. Like all blind people, Auggie hated it when someone grabbed his arm without asking just out of the blue and without a word. He was annoyed and said "Hey, what are you doing?" He shrugged off the hand, that had grabbed his arm and continued walking with his cane. Arriving on the other side of the street, he almost stumbled over the curb because he was so annoyed and did not concentrate. He had been blind for almost 10 years but it still annoyed him when people took him for helpless or assumed he might also be mentally retarded. Being dragged across the street was not only annoying, it was also scary.

Auggie walked along the sidewalk and made his way to the grocery store. Annie was still working and he wanted to prepare dinner. After two minutes he reached the shop. He found the door with his cane and walked in. He knew where the checkout was and walked towards it. The young lady stopped typing in the prices and looked up to him "Can I help you Sir?" "Yes." Auggie´s hands rested on top of his cane "I would appreciate some help." "Of course" The lady took the phone and called a colleague. A few seconds later a young man appeared. He grabbed Auggie´s arm and started walking. OH NO, NOT AGAIN Auggie thought and said as friendly as possible. "I would rather take your arm when you are guiding me." Both strolled through the aisles and whilst Auggie said what he needed, the young man put everything into a shopping basket. Auggie also had to remind the young man not to shout at him. He obviously assumed that Auggie was deaf, too. After 15 minutes the shopping was done. Auggie paid and put his groceries into his back pack and left. This was one of these days when his handicap bothered him. How could everyone assume that he was completely helpless?

At home, Auggie unpacked the groceries he had just bought and started cooking after he had wrapped an apron around his waist. He felt for the adhesive dots that marked the settings of the stove and chose the temperature. He put the chicken into the oven after he had seasoned it with pepper, salt and a variety of spices. Then he started peeling the potatoes, filled a pot with water and added some salt to the water. The timer also had little tactile dots in a 5 minutes rhythm. Auggie felt for the dots and set the time. After that he vanished into the shower. Annie would pick up Jeremy at Kindergarten today, so he had time.

After a refreshing shower Auggie returned to the kitchen. The potatoes were boiling and even the chicken smelled good already. In about half an hour Annie and Jeremy would be back and they would eat together. Three steps to the cupboard and Auggie opened the door. He took out plates and little bowls for the salad and opened the first drawer to get some cutlery. He set the table and started washing the salad. He would add the dressing a bit later. Twenty minutes later the door opened and he heard the voices of Annie and Jeremy. "Daddy, Daddy….!" The little boy ran into the kitchen like a whirlwind and tugged at Auggie´s apron. Auggie hugged him and kissed him on his little cheeks. " Daddy I am soooooooo….hungry" and then Jeremy peeked into the oven where the chicken was sizzling. "Mmmmhhhh….chicken…." he said and looked over to the table. "When will dinner be ready?" Auggie felt for the timer and the tactile dots and said "Well, in about 15 minutes everything should be ready." In the meantime Annie had opened the fridge and had taken out the bottle with the yoghurt dressing. She added some dressing to the salad and set the salad bowl on the table, too.

"Mmmhh…that is so yummy" Jeremy said whilst chewing. "Daddy should cook more often" Annie´s cooking skills were not the best and despite being blind Auggie was the better cook. Annie knew that but to hear that from her little son was something else.

Auggie sat at his desk in Langley, listening to some e-mails he had just received, when Joan entered the room. "Auggie? Could I have a word with you?" Auggie took off his headphones and listened "Sure" he said and turned into Joan´s direction. "We have a difficult situation and I need you and Annie to go on a mission together." Wow, Auggie thought. It had been a long time that he had not been out in the field. His blindness was an obstacle for him. "What kind of mission are we talking about?" Auggie asked incredulously. "Well, we have received information that a businessman from Egypt is selling weapons to Al Quaida. Knowing that you speak some Arabic, it would be convenient if you could accompany Annie to Cairo and give her the support she needs. Auggie was delighted. He would get out of his office again. That did not happen often since he had gone blind 10 years ago. "But what about Jeremy?" Auggie asked. "We would have to ask Virginia to stay with him while we are away.

Annie and Auggie were at the airport. They had just checked in and were waiting for their flight to be announced. For this mission, Auggie had decided to wear sunglasses. He rarely did that. But during a mission, the sunglasses supported a bit more the cliché of a blind man. He could also act pretty helpless in order to distract people. Nobody would assume that a blind man could be a spy. This tactical manoeuvre had already worked in Amsterdam when they had saved Eyal of of Khalid´s hands. After a long flight, they had finally arrived at their hotel. Auggie carefully explored the hotel room with his cane to memorize the position of the bed, the desk, the TV etc. He also found the bathroom and checked the position of the tub, the wash basin, the shower and the towel rack. He knew from experience that the first day in a hotel was always a bit difficult. Living without sight was never easy and it always took some time to get acquainted with the surroundings.

One day later

Auggie sat in a café sipping on a cup of coffee. He wore his sunglasses and had an almost invisible in-ear headset that connected him with Annie. Suddenly a little boy in rags approached begging for money. Auggie grabbed his wallet and took out one of the neatly folded bank notes and handed it over to the little boy. The boy thanked him in Arabic and started walking to the next table. Auggie knew, it was not always a good idea to give money to the beggars on the streets and to begging children. But now, that he was a father himself, it hurt him to know that other kids were less lucky than his own son. Seconds later Auggie heard Annie´s voice through his ear piece. "Auggie I need you to check on a guy named Sahid Al Basri" "Okay" Auggie replied. I will be back at the hotel in 5 minutes. I am on it." Auggie paid and had the waiter call him a taxi. Right after his arrival at the hotel Auggie booted his laptop and searched for the name Annie had given him. His hands slid across the portable Braille keyboard reading the information. Sahid al Basri was a manufacturer of textiles, but it seemed like he was also involved in money laundry for the Al Quaida group. After Auggie had found the information required, he called Annie.

The mission was a success. After a week Annie and Auggie returned to DC. Virginia was waiting at the airport with Jeremy. This time, Auggie did not use his cane. Annie was guiding him and with the other hand he trailed his suitcase on wheels behind. As soon as Auggie and Annie got closer to the exit, Jeremy spotted them and flew right into his parents´ arms. He had missed them. Then Jeremy took Auggie´s hand. He had already learned how to guide his father and they all made their way to the exit where a taxi was waiting for them. Virginia had greeted Auggie and Annie and had immediately left. She did not want to disturb the family reunion.


	4. Chapter 4

Family and home part 4

Auggie sat at his desk and had just finished the report he had to type for Joan, when he remembered that he had to pick up Jeremy at Kindergarten. The day had passed so fast, and he did not know what time it was. His sensitive fingers felt the time on his Braille watch and he realized, that he had to leave if he did not want to be late. He shut down the computer, opened the top drawer of his desk and fished out his white folding cane. Annie was still working and would come home late. So it was his job to take care of his son. Five minutes later Auggie was on his way to the bus stop. He needed a bit of fresh air so he had decided to take the bus instead of the regular car service. The bus stop was only about 500 m down the street and he knew the way. Auggie stood at the bus stop and waited. Two minutes later he heard the bus arrive, and walked towards the sound. He found the door with his cane, counted the steps whilst holding his cane in a vertical position and showed his ticket to the driver. The advantage of being blind was, that he could use public transport for free. Auggie took a seat close to the door and folded his cane on his lap.

After ten minutes the bus stopped Auggie got out and made his way to the Kindergarten to pick up his son. He counted the steps from the bus stop and after 300 m he stopped, crossed the street after listening to the traffic, and finally reached the building. Sweeping his cane back and forth he walked in. "Can I help you Sir?" He heard a voice right behind him "Yes, I am here to pick up my son Jeremy" The Kindergarten teacher looked at him and was a bit surprised. Then she said "Oh, you are Mr. Anderson? I did not know that…" and then she stopped. Auggie understood and replied "You did not know I was blind, right?" The young Kindergarten teacher blushed and said "Yes, up till now I have only met your wife. Would you please follow me." Auggie followed close behind her, using the sound of her heels for orientation. They entered a room where 5 or 6 children were still playing. When Jeremy spotted Auggie, he immediately ran towards him. "Let us go home Daddy" he said. The Kindergarten teacher looked at him and said "Jeremy, I guess there is still something to do for you before you can leave." With a roguish grin on his face Jeremy started walking to the table where he had sat before and started to collect the pieces of the puzzle he had been solving until Auggie had arrived. The other five kids in the room stared. They had never met Auggie before and they had never seen a blind person with a cane either. After Jeremy had cleared up the table he took Auggie´s hand and both left. The Kindergarten was not so far away from their house and therefore Auggie and Jeremy walked home. On their way home Jeremy suddenly asked "Daddy, do you know what it is like to see?" Auggie stopped, turned towards his son and replied "Yes, I have not always been blind. I went blind when I was an adult already." They continued walking along the sidewalk when Jeremy asked again "So, Daddy you know what red, blue or black looks like?" "Yes, I remember all the colours although I cannot see them anymore" Auggie answered and smiled because he found it interesting how much his little son worried about him.

The next morning Annie took Jeremy to Kindergarten. Soon after his arrival Jeremy found himself surrounded by his little friends. They all asked him "Was that your Daddy yesterday?" And Jeremy answered "Yes, my Dad picked me up yesterday." "And why did he hold that strange white stick in his hands?" Susan asked "That is not a stick, that is a cane." Jeremy said in an almost condescending tone. "And what is this cane for?" Susan insisted. "My Daddy is blind, he cannot see and he uses the cane to get around." Jeremy explained. "With the white cane he can feel what is in front of him when he walks." Susan still did not understand what Jeremy had explained to her but she said "Ok" and went to look for an interesting toy to play with. "You are a poor boy" one of the other kids said. "Why?" Jeremy asked. "Because your Daddy cannot see and he cannot go for a walk with you, he cannot read stories to you and he cannot play with you." Now Jeremy was annoyed. He loved his father and shouted "You are a liar! What you say is not true! My Daddy reads to me fairy tales every evening from his Braille book, we go to the park to feed the ducks, he plays with me and he knows the names of ALL THE BIRDS when he hears them chirping in the garden." The other boy was impressed but still a bit incredulous and asked "But how can he read when he cannot see?" "He reads with his fingers from a book with little dots." Jeremy said. He was proud that he knew so much about his Daddy and could defend him. "Nobody can read with their fingers" the other boy said "That is impossible." "But MY DADDY CAN and he is the best Daddy of the world! If you do not believe me, you can come and visit me and see for yourself." Jeremy said.

Late in the afternoon Auggie returned to pick up Jeremy. He had memorized the way to the room and swept his cane to find the door. Jeremy saw him and asked "Daddy, can we take Justin home with us. He wants to play with me?" "It is okay with me" Auggie said "But we have to ask his Mum first." Minutes later Justin´s Mum arrived and allowed her son to play with Jeremy. Hand in hand Auggie and Jeremy walked home and Justin followed them. The boy was surprised how easily Auggie handled the cane. When they arrived at home, Auggie opened the fridge to get out some milk and went to look for some cookies, too. Jeremy and Justin enjoyed their little snack and after a while Jeremy said "Daddy, could you read a story to us? Maybe the one about the little cat and the three mice? Justin does not believe you can read." "Of course I can read." Auggie said and then he turned into Jeremy´s direction and said "Go, and get the book from my desk. You know which one it is."

Jeremy left the room and seconds later he returned with a huge Braille book in his hands. Auggie had taken a seat on the couch and now Jeremy placed the book on Auggie´s lap and snuggled down next to him whilst Justin took a seat in an armchair. Auggie let his fingers slide across the pages, found the page with the story that Jeremy wanted to hear and started reading "_Once there was a little cat named Sally and her best friends were three mice_…." Justin was fascinated and watched Auggie when he slid his fingertips across the pages. By the end of the story Jeremy asked "Do you now believe that my Daddy can read?" Justin nodded. Two hours later Justin´s mother arrived to take her son home. When she walked through the door Justin ran towards his Mum and said "Mummy Mummy…..Mr. Anderson can read with his hands." "That is impressive." Justin´s mother replied and then she added "Thank you Mr. Anderson for letting my son play with Jeremy". "It was a pleasure." Auggie smiled. And then Justin and his Mum left. "You are the best Daddy and I do not mind that you cannot see." Jeremy said and looked up to his Dad. "And I am proud to have a son like you" Auggie answered and pulled Jeremy into a hug.


	5. Chapter 5

Auggie and Annie family and home part 5

Annie and Auggie strolled through the shopping centre. They needed to run some errands for the party the following weekend. It was Jeremy´s 6th birthday and shortly later, he would start school.

„Kids are growing up so fast" Annie said with a sigh. Auggie had taken her arm and kept his cane folded in the other hand.

„Yeah, Jeremy will go to school soon and 1,2,3, he will graduate and bring the first girl friend

home„ Auggie smiled.

„I wish he was not growing so fast, I enjoy seeing him learn something new every day" Annie said.

And then she stopped in front of the department store. She and Auggie strolled through the aisles.

„I hope we will find everything we need" Annie said „Have you got the shopping list?"

Auggie reached into his messenger bag and fished out a piece of paper. He slid his fingers across it and read „We need: ballons, napkins, plastic plates and cups, candles, cookies, chips, lemonade, orange juice and the ingredients for the birthday cake"

After a while the shopping cart was filled with all the articles Annie and Auggie needed. The only thing missing was the birthday present. Annie paid and she and Auggie stowed everything in the trunk of the car, before they went to the toy store. Again Auggie took Annie´s elbow but this time he opened his cane and swept it back and forth in a small arc whilst walking.

The toy store was a maze for Auggie. It offered anything a kid could want. From talking dolls and Barbie houses up to huge stuffed plush animals and motorbikes for kids.

Annie noticed the looks of some customers. Even after such a long time with Auggie, she was bothered by the pitiful looks of people, when they realized that her husband was blind. Often, she was glad that Auggie could not see these glances. But of course he knew that he was being watched and sometimes he asked „are we stared at?" and then Annie had to reply „yes we are".

Then a friendly shop assistant approached „Can I help you?" The young man asked.

„Yes, we are looking for a Playmobil Knight´s Castle for our son. It is his sixth birthday and he loves knights." Auggie answered.

„Then you have come to the right place" the shop assistant said „Please come with me"

Annie and Auggie followed and finally they reached the section with all kinds of Playmobil toys for boys and girls. The shop assistant took a huge carton from one of the shelves and showed it to Annie.

„Yes, that is what we have been looking for" Annie said. „Does the box only contain the castle?" Auggie asked.

„Yes, knights, horses etc. are not included. There are boxes with five knights and one princess and also additional boxes with 5 horses available " The shop assistant informed them.

„Okay, then we will take the castle, a box with knights and a second one with horses" Auggie said and Annie nodded.

„Excellent choice" The shop assistant said „Your son will surely be delighted"

Annie and Auggie walked to the checkout and when they had paid, the young lady asked them „Shall I wrap it up as a gift?"

„Yes, that would be great" Annie answered. The lady took a piece of paper with nice Disney pictures and wrapped the three boxes up. When she was done, she added a huge red bow.

„That looks fantastic" Annie said before she took the boxes out of the shop assistant´s hand.

Now, Annie needed both hands to carry the boxes and so Auggie walked next to her using his cane. When the reached the parking lot, Annie put the cartons into the trunk that was already filled with the other errands for Jeremy´s birthday party.

„I am glad we got everything we needed" Auggie said before they drove back home.

**Five days later**

Annie and Auggie were still in bed, when Auggie suddenly felt somebody crawling into bed, snuggling down between him and Annie.

Mum, Daddy...it is my birthday...I am gonna be six today...Jeremy was excited...

„Morning, champion" Auggie murmured with a still sleepy voice. He had no idea what time it was. Therefore he turned a bit towards the nightstand and touched the button of his alarm clock.

„It is 5:30 a.m." The voice announced.

In the meantime Annie had woken up, too. „Hey Jeremy, what are you doing here so early?"

„Mum...did you forget, today is my birthday" Jeremy replied.

„Yes, I know but it is still early. Why don´t you go back to bed? It is only 5:30 in the morning."

„May I stay here?" Jeremy asked.

„Okay" Auggie said and wrapped his right arm around his son. „You can stay here in our bed, if you let your Mum and me sleep for a little while longer. In two hours it is still early enough to get up. The day is still long, you won´t miss anything and Granny Gladys and Grandfather Dave will not be here before noon"

„Okay Daddy" Jeremy moved a bit closer to Auggie and within a few seconds, he was sound asleep again in his father´s arm.

After a quick breakfast Annie and Auggie started working in the kitchen. Annie prepared an apple cake and a number of chocolate muffins. Whilst Auggie peeled the potatoes for the potato salad. The morning passed with preparations and at a quarter past twelve, the doorbell rang. Auggie wiped his hands on the apron, he had wrapped around his waist and walked to the door.

„Hey Mum, hey Dad" he greeted when he opened the door.

„Hello son" Dave Anderson said and hugged Auggie.

„It is so good to see you again after such a long time" That was the voice of Gladys, Auggie´s mother.

„I am glad that you could make it, to be with us for Jeremy´s sixth birthay" Auggie smiled before he walked back to the kitchen where Annie was still preparing the muffins.

„Your beautiful wife seems to be very busy" Dave Anderson remarked, before he pulled Annie into a hug. Seconds later, the door on the first floor opened and Jeremy stormed down the stairs.

„Grandma, Granddad... he called and ran straight away into the open arms of his grandmother"

„Hey, you have really grown since our last visit" Gladys Anderson said.

„I am six already" Jeremy said proudly „And in August I will go to school with Ben, Tim and the others from Kindergarten"

„Yes, you have become a big boy" Dave Anderson said and lifted Jeremy up before he whirled him around.

Three hours later, the Anderson house was filled with sounds and the laughter of kids. Jeremy had been allowed to invite six of his Kindergarten friends for a party. Ben, Tim, Alicia, Sarah, Britney and Jason were now playing with Jeremy in the garden. The weather was hot and sunny and Auggie and Annie had filled a pool with water. Now the kids were playing in the water using the water slide and were splashing each other with the cool water.

Auggie loved being with kids, but having a handful of them at home was a challenge for him. Jeremy´s friends knew him, but they were not familiar with his blindness. He had to be extra careful not to stumble over stuff the kids had left on the terrace, the lawn or somewhere inside the house. One of the first things his own son had to learn when he was old enough to understand, was not to leave anything out of place or in the way.

„Hey anybody up for some hot chocolate and Muffins?" Annie called

Playing in the water had made the kids hungry and so one kid after the other came running back to the table where Annie had prepared everything. The huge apple cake in the middle had six burning candles and there were muffins, hazelnut cookies and Brownies as well.

Annie and Auggie helped the kids to dry themselves with towels before each of them pulled over a t-shirt and took a seat at the table.

„I think it is time now to blow out the birthday candles and to make a wish" Auggie said. Jeremy took a deep breath and while the other kids counted 1,2,3...he blew out the candles on his cake.

Soon one muffin after the other disappeared from the table and Annie had to walk back into the kitchen where Gladys was preparing another load of hot chocolate for the kids.

„Are you up for a story?" Auggie asked when all of the kids had finished their chocolate and their cake.

„Oh yes" the kids screamed

„Ok, then let me get the book and I ´ll be back in a minute"

„My dad is the best storyteller ever" Jeremy said and looked after Auggie, who was walking slowly towards the terrace door.

Annie had spread two huge blankets on the lawn and Auggie took a seat on a chair when he returned with the fairy tale book. The children, sitting to his feet, listened expectantly, when Auggie slid his fingertips across the Braille page and started reading..._"Once there was a brave knight and he loved the beautiful Princess Lilly but the evil dragon Jaromir..."  
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The kids listened to Auggie´s story with excitement. Every now and then Annie heard "Oh" ..."Ah" or other sounds, that told her that Auggie´s story had really captured the kids.

„Auggie really has a way with kids" Gladys said with admiration in her voice, standing next to Annie on the threshold of the terrace door. She had never watched her son with other kids than his own son and she was proud. After Auggie´s accident she had given up hoping that her youngest son would be a husband and father one day. Seeing him like that, was more than she could take and she couldn´t help her eyes getting wet. She wiped away a tear with the sleeve of her blouse, before she and Annie went out onto the terrace to join the others.

When Auggie had finished the story, the kids pleaded „Mr. Anderson read to us one more story please..."

„I would love that, but I guess there is something more interesting waiting for you." Auggie said with a smile.

Annie had prepared a treasure hunt for the kids and soon the kids were busy with finding the objects that Annie had hidden in the cellar and in the garden.

At a quarter past six, Dave Anderson started with the barbecue. Auggie loved barbecues, but since he had gone blind, open fire was too dangerous for him and so he left the job of the barbecue master to his father. Annie and Auggie had bought charcoal, hamburgers and sausages and whilst Gladys laid the table with plates, cutlery and colourful Micky Mouse napkins, Annie seasoned the potato salad and got some ketchup from the fridge.

Half an hour later, the hungry kids stormed towards the table and one hamburger after the other found its way onto the kids´ plates.

„Mr. Anderson, Jeremy said that you cannot see, but how do you know where the food is on your plate?" Alicia asked and looked over to Auggie.

Auggie swallowed the last bite of his sausage, wiped his mouth with the Mickey Mouse napkin and turned his head a bit toward the girl´s voice.

„Can you already read the time on a clock?" Auggie asked

„Yes Mr. Anderson"

„Okay, this is how I remember where everything is on my plate. Today, Hamburger is at six ´o clock, potato salad at three and sausage at twelve"

„Wow, that is a funny idea" the girl said before she continued eating her potato salad and her Hamburger.

Two hour later, the kids had been picked up by their parents and Annie, Auggie and Auggie´s parents were cleaning up the kitchen and the terrace.

Jeremy was in his room. He had just unwrapped the huge knight´s castle and was now playing.

„Time to go to bed son" Auggie had entered the room and now slowly felt his way towards his son.

„Oh Daddy, just let me play a bit more with my new toys"

„There will still be enough time for that tomorrow" Auggie replied

„Oh Daddy, pleeeaaasseee..."

„No, Jeremy, it has been an exciting and long day for you. It is almost nine ´o clock and bedtime for kids of your age.

„But Daddy, I AM SIX NOW!"

„I know, and six year old boys who want to go to school soon need enough sleep"

And then Auggie grabbed his squeaking kid, threw Jeremy across his shoulder and carried him to the bathroom.

„Daddy, you are so mean" Jeremy said when Auggie finally set him down again, right in front of the wash basin.

„This is what I said to your grandfather when I was your age" Auggie grinned and grabbed the toothbrush from the shelf above the wash basin and held it out to his son.

Fifteen minutes later Jeremy was in his bed. He had discussed a bit longer with his father but Auggie had insisted on him going to bed.

As soon as Auggie had spread the blanket over him, Jeremy fell asleep. It had been a long day.


	6. Chapter 6

Family and Home part 6

Auggie climbed up the stairs and trailed his right hand slightly along the wall when he had taken the last step. Seconds later, he entered his son´s room and stumbled over a load of Lego bricks displayed on the floor.

Jeremy sat on the floor playing Lego and was still in his pyjamas. Auggie carefully made his way over to his son and said.

„Hey, you have to hurry, today is your first school day"

„But Dad, I have to finish the Lego house first before I go"

Now Auggie squatted and tried to meet his son´s gaze when he took the little boy by his shoulders and explained.

„You have to be punctual when you are a school kid. You cannot arrive whenever you want and disturb the teacher´s lesson. So hurry up and put your shoes on. There is still time for a short breakfast before we go.

„But Dad, I am still in my pyjama" Jeremy said with a grin that Auggie could hear in his voice.

„What? I thought you had already brushed your teeth and gotten dressed"

Auggie shook his head incredulous of what he had just heard.

„Get up from the floor right now and grab the clothes that Mum has already prepared for you on the chair."

„But Daddy..." Jeremy protested again before he was cut off by Auggie´s stern voice

„Jeremy Anderson, if you don´t get up the next second and start to get dressed, I will get very angry and you know what that means." Auggie´s voice had gotten a bit louder and his tone warned Jeremy to better obey.

The little boy rose from the floor and went over to the chair where Annie had prepared a pair of new black jeans, a red shirt and some socks and underwear. He started to get dressed and Auggie listened carefully before he turned, walked to the door and said.

„I´m going to have breakfast now with your Mum, if you want some, you better hurry. Otherwise you will start your first school day hungry."

Auggie made his way to the kitchen again where Annie had laid the table and was about to pour coffee for Auggie and herself and some hot chocolate for Jeremy.

Two minutes later Jeremy appeared as well and took a seat next to Auggie.

„Did you really want to be late on your first school day and keep your friends and everybody else waiting for you?" Annie asked when Jeremy had taken the first bite of his strawberry jam toast.

„No Mum, but I need to finish my Lego house"

„You can do that darling when you are back this afternoon" Annie replied sipping on her coffee. Whilst Auggie felt for the butter on the breakfast table and spread it on his toast.

Jeremy had always been difficult, when it came to leaving on time in the morning. He always found something that he urgently needed to do before leaving for Kindergarten and Annie and Auggie had a hard time to make him leave punctually. Kindergarten was one thing, but school was something else. There was no excuse for being late and Jeremy had to learn that. The earlier, the better.

Half an hour later Annie got the car out of the garage, Auggie grabbed his white folding cane from the dresser and got the new school bag that he and Annie had bought for their son. It was blue and had dinosaur pictures. Jeremy loved dinosaurs and enjoyed listening to dinosaur stories and playing with toy dinosaurs.

Jeremy came out of the bathroom after washing traces of strawberry jam and chocolate off his mouth and exclaimed „Wow what a great school bag! DINOSAURS!"

Auggie smiled „Do you like it?" Annie had described how the school bag looked and now he was happy that his son liked it.

„Of course I like it" Jeremy said and took the bag out of Auggie´s hand.

„Okay, then let´s go now"! Auggie unfolded his cane and followed his son to the door and down the three steps to the gravel path where Annie was waiting in their car.

Auggie helped Jeremy to attach the belt of the seat carefully before he sat down next to Annie and the three made their way to the local primary school.

Fifteen minutes later they arrived at the school building. Auggie and Jeremy got out of the car and Annie followed after she had found a free spot to park their Mercedes. Jeremy´s friends and their parents were already waiting for him.

„Hey what a great school bag" Jeremy´s friend Tom said when he saw Jeremy´s dinosaur bag.

„Yeah it is really fantastic" Jeremy said and proudly showed the blue bag to his friend.

„Mine is red and has got a number of cool race cars and trucks" Now Tom showed his own school bag to Jeremy and both boys compared their new bags and the school accessories inside. There were pencils, an ink pen, a couple of work books and a number of other school items.

Five minutes later, Jeremy sat in his new classroom with Tom and his other Kindergarten friends and listened to the words of his new teacher.

The friendly young lady introduced herself to the kids and their parents.

„Good morning everyone, I am happy to see all of you here on your first school day. My name is Samantha Williams and I will be your teacher for the first four years here at school"

And then Mrs. Williams explained to the kids and parents what was on schedule for the next few weeks for the school starters.

Auggie and Annie and the other parents were waiting in the back of the classroom and were listening to the words of the teacher. When Mrs. Williams had finished her explanations she said.

„Today is your first day here at school, to make it easier for you there will only be two lessons. Your parents can pick you up in one hour and a half. But from tomorrow on, you will be here until noon every day. I hope we will have a lot of fun learning and working together."

„She sounds nice" Auggie said turning towards Annie, when they headed to the door with the other parents. Auggie had taken Annie´s arm and kept his cane diagonally in front of him as a signal for others. He felt a bit uncomfortable. Jeremy´s Kindergarten friends and their parents knew him but when he made new acquaintances it was sometimes difficult. Most people did not know how to act around a blind person and some of them even assumed he was mentally retarded or deaf when they spoke to him. He would need some time to get to know the other parents and teachers.

Jeremy sat in the classroom with the other kids. Mrs. Williams had asked the kids to draw a picture and to write their name on the back of the sheet when they were finished. Jeremy carefully chose the colours for his picture. There were ships, a lake and some trees. Jeremy´s friend Tom sat on his left and to the right there was Steven, a boy he had not known before. All the kids in the classroom were busy with their pictures and Mrs. Williams slowly walked through the room admiring each single picture.

After a while, Steven turned a bit towards Jeremy, looking at the picture the boy was drawing and asked „Did you see the man with the white stick here in the classroom this morning?"

Jeremy stopped drawing, looked up to his neighbour and said „The man is my Dad and it is not a stick _it is a cane_"

„And what is he doing with this _cane_?" Steven asked with curiosity

With an expression that could have belonged to a unversity professor and in a slightly condescending tone Jeremy replied „My Daddy is blind. Blind people use a cane to get around so that they will not walk into something"

Steven looked astonished. He had never seen a blind person before but he knew what the word blind meant. He said „My daddy always reads to me when I go to bed. How can your dad read to you when he cannot see?"

„My dad can read with his hands" Jeremy explained proudly. „He has a book with lots of tiny dots and every dot is a letter"

„That sounds funny" Steven replied „Can I see this book ? I want to know what it looks like"

„You have to come and visit, then I will show you" Jeremy said before he picked up his colour pencils again and continued drawing.

An hour later, Jeremy´s first school day was over. Annie waited for him in front of the building whilst Auggie remained in the car. He had a call to make and was talking on his Iphone. Joan had an important question and he was discussing an urgent matter with her on the phone.

Jeremy stormed out of the building „Mummy, Daddy, look what I have drawn!"

The little boy proudly showed his picture to Annie and both walked to the car a few feet away from the school building. When Annie opened the door of the car, Auggie had just finished his call with Joan. He turned a bit in his seat towards Annie and Jeremy and asked

„So how did it go on your first day"`?

„It was good" Jeremy answered and then he started to describe the picture he had drawn to his dad. Auggie smiled. His little son had a lot of intuition. He knew that his father could only see through his descriptions. Jeremy was only six, but it was a natural habit for him to describe everything to his dad or to place it in his hands so that he could explore it.


	7. Chapter 7

Auggie and Annie family and home part 7

Jeremy sat at his desk. He had already written a line full of „A" and „B". The first week at school had gone quite well and every morning Annie took him to school before she and Auggie went to Langley.

The little boy was still immersed into his homework, when Auggie entered the room. Slowly he made his way over to the desk, felt for Jeremy´s shoulder, patted it and said „Hey champion, how is homework going?"

The boy turned a bit, looked up from his workbook and said „I have already written a line with „A" And „B" and then he added in a slightly sad tone „I wish you could see that Dad"

But then Jeremy seemed to regret what he had just said and added „I love you so much Daddy whether you can see or not" and then he slung his little arms around Auggie´s waist.

Auggie smiled. He had gotten used to being blind long time ago, but since he was a father, being unable to see sometimes hurt him. He didn´t want his child to be the victim of his disability as he called it. He did not want his little son to suffer because he could not share everything with him like other fathers. Of course he could read stories to him in Braille, he could take a walk with him but he could not play soccer with him like other dads, he could not admire the pictures he had drawn and what hurt him most was the fact that he would never see how his little boy slowly became a man.

Auggie pushed these thoughts aside and replied „I love you, too, son" and then he bent down and placed a soft kiss on his son´s forehead.

„You are the best daddy" Jeremy said, before he asked „Did you read with the dots when you were a school kid?"

„No. When I was a kid I could see and I used to read like you and all the other kids. I went blind when I was already a man. I was 28 when the accident that took my eyesight happened."

For a moment Jeremy went quiet. He seemed to be thinking about something. Then he asked.

„Do adults go to school, too?"

„Well some of them do" Auggie said „Even adults need to learn new things from time to time for their job. We call that seminar"

„Did you go to a braille seminar Dad?"

„Yeah, in fact I did. After my accident and after the hospital stay, I went to a blind school to learn to live without seeing."

Now Jeremy grinned „I think it´s kind of funny that adults go to school again"

Auggie realized that his son was getting older. He was now a school kid and he asked more questions. Their conversations went deeper and Auggie was wondering what was going to come in the near future.

The next morning in Langley Auggie was busy again. He had just read a couple of e-mails and was about to print out a sheet when his phone rang. It was Joan.

„Auggie, I need to see you. Would you please come to my office in 5 minutes!" She said before she hung up and ended the call.

Auggie was curious. What might his boss want from him? He had no idea. He grabbed his cane and made his way along the halls to the elevator. He felt for the button and listened carefully. When he heard the elevator stop and the door opened, he stepped into the elevator. His hands found the third button, he pressed it and seconds later he was on his way to the third floor and to Joan Campebell´s office.

The door opened again and Auggie set his cane in motion. He walked a few steps and knocked.

„Come in" sounded Joan´s voice through the door. He grabbed the door handle and entered. Auggie was perfectly familiar with the layout of the room and headed straight away towards the desk.

„Good to see you, take a seat" Joan said and Auggie felt for the chair before he sat down across from Joan.

„I have a job for you" Joan started the conversation

„I thought I already have one" Auggie quipped and grinned into Joan´s direction.

„I need you to go on a mission again. I need your help. There is nobody else I would trust to do this job"

Auggie smiled. He loved to hear that. After his accident he had often felt useless. A desk job was not what he had expected from his career, but given is limitations, he took every opportunity to get out of his office. After all and despite his visual disability, he was still a spy and he loved an adventure from time to time. He needed to prove that he still could do valuable work.

„Tell me more about that job" Auggie said trying now to meet Joan´s gaze.

„Well, it is a very special job and you are the perfect person for it. It requires special skills"

„What kind of skills would that be? Computer hacking, deciphering tricky codes?" Auggie was extremely curious.

„Well, it requires the skills of a blind person" Joan explained.

„Pardon me?"

Auggie was confused.

„Auggie, this is a special case. I seems like somebody from the blind community is involved into a dirty business with weapons. There have been illegal deliveries of arms to Iran. We have nothing concrete so far but it looks like the person is operating from the rehab centre.

„And that means...?" Auggie´s brain started rattling. Was he supposed to go back to the rehab centre where he had spent time after his accident? He love missions and challenges but in this case...

„Auggie, I want you to go to the rehab centre and check what is going on there. We will introduce you as a teacher for computer and IT lessons"

Auggie started to feel uncomfortable. Going on a mission was one thing but going to the rehab centre for the blind where he had spent six months after his accident in Iraq was something that he had not expected and something he feared.

Auggie had come to terms with his blindness, but spending time at the rehab centre, would bring back memories of things, people and situations he wanted to forget. In such an institution, the ubiquitous problems of being blind were hard to ignore and Auggie did not want to go back on a journey to his past, to the time, when he had to adapt to living without sight. Being blind had become normal and most of the time he did not even think about it. But as soon as he was with other people who did not know him well, he realized his limitations.

„When do I start?" Auggie asked and his expression showed, that he was not very fond of his next mission.

Joan looked at him and asked „Auggie, I know you quite well, what is going on? Is there something that I should know?"

Auggie shifted in his chair and fumbled with his folded cane in his hands. „Joan, I...I...I...don´t know ..."

„Who would be more inconspicuous than you Auggie? I know something is bothering you. So spill it"

„Well..." Auggie cleared his throat and continued fumbling with his cane „I...I..I am afraid that going back to the centre will bring back memories of times that I wanted to forget. I was there after my accident... and... I had a hard time adapting to this" he waved his hands before his eyes before he continued

„I know that I am the right person for that job, but I have to admit, that I am a bit scared to deal with the problems of being blind on a daily basis because I would like to forget that _I am different,_ so to speak."

„I get it" Joan said and her voice was laced with sympathy. She appreciated Auggie for all his capabilities and even she was sometimes a bit hurt, when she thought of everything that Auggie had gone through.

„But I have to insist on you doing this job. There is no better person for that mission and you know that, too. I understand your feelings Auggie, but it is important for us to find out what is going on there. Giving the job to somebody who has to pretend to be blind is way too risky and it requires too much time and preparation and we don´t have that time."

„When do I start?" Auggie asked before Joan rose from her seat and put a folder with information in Braille in Auggie´s hand. Auggie took it and slid his hands across the Braille label.

„This is everything you need to know" She said and patted Auggie´s shoulder reassuringly.

Auggie stood, unfolded his cane and walked to the door. He was out in the field, but he was not as happy as he usually was, when he went on a mission. This mission was also something like a trip into his past and that was what bothered him.

Back home again, Auggie took the three steps to the entrance of his house, fished the keys out of his pockets and unlocked the door. Annie was still out, picking up Jeremy who had visited one of his friends right after school.

Auggie went into the kitchen, walked to the fridge and grabbed a beer. He needed some comfort to forget about his worries concerning the next mission. He sat down on the couch and was lost in thought when Annie and Jeremy finally arrived.

„Hey Daddy" Jeremy ran towards the couch and threw himself onto Auggie´s lap.

„Hello champion, how was your day?" Auggie hugged his son tightly after he had set the beer bottle on the coffee table in front of him.

„We learned the letters C and D today at school and I can count up to 50 now! Jeremy declared proudly. „And when I went home with Tom, his Mum made us chocolate muffins and we played with his new race-car track.

„Sounds like a great day" Auggie smiled and grabbed his beer bottle from the table to take the last sip.

Jeremy climbed off Auggie´s lap and walked up the stairs to his room. He put his school bag on the desk chair and then he made his way to his father´s desk in the room next door. He grabbed the fairy tale book in Braille and walked down to the living room again.

„Daddy, do you read a story to me, pleeaaasseee..."

Auggie could hardly resist. He extended his hand and Jeremy handed the book over.

„Which of the stories do you want to hear?"

„I love the story of the three ducks and the fox"

„Okay" Auggie slid his hands across the pages to find the right story. When he had gotten to the page he was searching for, his hands quickly deciphered the Braille bumps and he started reading: _once there were three little ducks and their mother always told them to be careful when they went out because the fox was after everything that had wings and feathers..._

Jeremy snuggled down on the couch next to his father and listened to the story. When Auggie had read the last sentence Jeremy asked.

„Daddy, at school I learn how to read and write, but if I want YOU to read what I have written I need to write Braille. Can you show me how to read and write the dots?"

Auggie was surprised about so much interest in his world. His son was very intuitive and very helpful as well. But his request to learn Braille really moved him. So he replied.

„Of course, I will show you how to write and read Braille if you like"

„Can we start now Daddy? I am so curious"

Auggie smiled

„Sure, just let me grab my stylus and slate and then I will show you how that works"

Auggie made his way up to his desk, felt for the first drawer, opened it and grabbed a Braille slate and his stylus. He walked down the stairs again and took a seat at the kitchen table.

„Come over and watch" he said turning his head into Jeremy´s direction.

The little boy padded over to his dad and sat beside him.

„First of all you have to insert the paper" Auggie explained and opened the Braille slate. Then he put a sheet of paper in, closed the slate and grabbed the stylus.

„Do you see all of these littles squares?" Auggie asked

Jeremy nodded but then remembered that he had to reply and said „Yeah I do. What are these for?"

„Well, every square is for a letter. You take the stylus and place a dot either in one of the corners, in the middle or a bit further down."

Jeremy now looked at his father´s hands and how Auggie placed a little dot in the top right corner, one dot in the top right corner and one below, and finally one dot in the top right and one in the top left.

„These are the letters A,B and C" Auggie said. He opened the slate, took out the sheet and turned it before he showed it to his son.

„That is awesome" Jeremy said. admiration lacing his voice. He looked at the little dots on paper, slid his finger across the bumps and asked.

„May I also try it?"

„Sure" Auggie inserted the paper again and Jeremy took the slate and the stylus out of his father´s hand.

„Where do I write the A"?

„Place a little dot in the top right corner" Auggie instructed

„Done" Jeremy said

„Okay, now place one dot in the top right corner and one below, and you will have a B. In the next square you place a dot in the top right and one in the top left corner"

With zeal, Jeremy followed Auggie´s orders. Then he opened the slate, took out the paper and handed it to Auggie.

Auggie´s sensitive fingertips quickly slid across the sheet and he was stunned. Jeremy had written every dot correctly.

„You did it" Auggie said and patted Jeremy´s head. „You are a real talent"

Seconds later, the door opened and Annie came in

„Hey, what are you two up to?" She asked.

„Mum, Daddy has shown me how to write ABC in Braille" Jeremy exclaimed. He was so excited that he could write Braille dots.

„Yeah, that is really neat" Annie replied and walked over to the table to admire hers son´s work.

„I guess I will have to learn that as well" Annie remarked. „Don´t want to be the only one here who does not have a clue of that"

„Great idea Honey" Auggie said and pulled her closer for a kiss.


	8. Chapter 8

Auggie and Annie Family and Home part 8

Auggie paid the cab driver, opened the door, unfolded his cane until he heard the units snap into place, tapped the cane twice on the ground and made his way to the door. Almost 9 years had passed since his last visit. It was a long time, but his memory was still fresh. He knew the way in and around the centre and did not need any help. This was the place, where he had learned a lot about living as a blind person. His stay at the centre had had a long lasting impression on him and that kept his memory fresh and clear.

He walked along the gravel path to the door, climbed the three steps and waited for the electric glass door to slide open. Then he oriented himself a bit, turned to the right and walked straight to the reception desk. The receptionist was talking on the phone and so Auggie waited.

Twenty seconds later, the friendly receptionist hung up and asked „How can I help you Sir?"

„My name is Anderson, I am the new IT instructor and I would like to talk to Mrs. Garcia.

„Sure" The receptionist turned towards the phone again, and made a call.

A minute later a middle aged woman with black curly hair and slightly overweight arrived and welcomed Auggie.

„Nice to see you Mr. Anderson. We really could use your help here. We have so many students here, that our current IT instructor Mr. Darcy is really overworked. Welcome to our team" Mrs. Garcia smiled and then she added.

„Your face seems familiar to me, have we met before?"

Auggie turned towards her and replied „We actually did. I was a patient here about 9 years ago, right after my accident in Iraq."

And then Mrs. Garcia seemed to remember „Oh yes, the soldier who was in a bomb attack...of course. Most people here have gone blind by progressive eye conditions. We seldom have patients who have gone through something like a bomb attack" She epxlained.

„Do you want to take my arm?" I will show you to the IT room. We have switched places. The IT rooms used to be on the first floor, now they are next to the dining room" Mrs Garcia said.

Auggie grabbed the lady´s elbow and had her lead the way to the room where computer and IT lessons took place.

Two minutes later, they arrived. Mrs. Garcia led Auggie to his desk and showed him where the Braille printer and the instruction material in Braille was.

„The students will arrive shortly. It is their first day here, so you will have to start from scratch so to speak" Mrs. Garcia said „Good luck on your first day. If you have any questions my office is directly opposite of this room".

Auggie folded his cane, put it into his messenger bag, put the messenger bag on the desk and took a seat. He was excited. He had never been a teacher before but he was sure that he could explain the details of working with screenreader and refreshable Braille display to the students.

Auggie slid his hands across the Braille instruction material for beginners. It seemed all very detailed and well explained. He remembered HIS first day in the IT room of the centre. He had felt like a newbie, like somebody who had never worked with a computer before. Working with a computer sighted was one thing, but using it blind was a real challenge. And he had mastered it. Step by step he had regained almost all of his IT and hacking skills. He was still good.

Now, he hoped that he could be of assistance to other blind people, whilst investigating secretly what was going on in that centre. There were still fifteen minutes time until his first lesson started. Auggie used them to become familiar with the room. He cautiously walked through the room his right hand slightly extended to the side, taking in the distance from his desk to the front row.

He continued walking. There were 4 rows with 5 chairs each. Five steps from his desk to the first row. 12 until the last row. Reaching the last row, Auggie walked to the right, trailed his hand along the wall and found two windows. He opened the first one to get some fresh air before he walked slowly back to his desk.

Five minutes later, Auggie heard the tapping of various canes and the first students arrived, trying to find their way into the room. One student after the other dropped in and at exactly 9 o´clock Auggie closed the door.

„I hope we are complete" he said and grabbed the list with the names of all participants from his desk. Auggie read every name from the list aloud, waiting for the people to confirm their presence.

„I am your IT instructor and my name is Anderson" Auggie introduced himself after he had checked that the group was complete. And in order to lighten the mood a bit, he said „ We have something in common, this is YOUR first day here in the IT room and MY first day as a teacher. But don´t worry, I am an expert in technology, I just needed a few victims to try out my teaching skills"

Now some of the students laughed. Auggie´s very own sense of humour had broken the ice.

„I hope we will work well together" Auggie said before he started to hand out the instruction sheets to each student.

The first morning went well. Auggie walked from one desk to the next, explaining the use of the Braille display and giving advice for the use of the key combinations for the screen reader.

Around noon, when the last lesson was almost over, Sabrina, one of the students asked.

„Mr. Anderson, are you also blind?"

„Yes, I am completely blind, why do you ask?"

„Well, I have already had my reservations about working with a computer sighted, and now I have to try it blind. It is amazing how a blind person can be so proficient with computers. I never thought that this was possible."

„Well, I had been in IT before my accident and so I knew a lot about computers. Re-learning was not easy for me either but I did it and now I am glad that the effort paid off" Auggie replied.

„I hope that I will soon get the hang of all that tech stuff as well, Sabrina said before she packed her bag and left, swinging her cane back and forth in front of her.

Two hours later, Auggie was back at home. Annie was still in Langley and Jeremy had gone home with Tom after school. Tom did not live far from the Anderson´s house and Auggie knew the way. After he had dropped the IT instruction material he had carried in his messenger bag on the desk, he made his way down the stairs again to pick up his son.

A quarter to 4 Auggie reached the house of the Henderson family. He felt for the door bell, rang and waited. Shortly after, Tom´s mum arrived and opened the door for him.

„Oh Mr. Anderson, a pleasure to see you, you surely want to pick up your son" she smiled before she asked Auggie to come in.

„The kids are playing in the garden, do you want to come with me?"

„Yes, but could you show me the way please?" Auggie asked. He felt a bit uncomfortable. Even after being blind for so many years it felt awkward to ask for help when he met new people or when he was with people, who did not know him well. With Annie things hat been easy from the very beginning. She had a natural way to offer her help and he had enjoyed taking her arm from day one.

Tom´s mother was a bit unsure about how to react. Auggie sensed her insecurity and said

„Could you give me your arm, then I can easily follow you."

Mrs. Henderson now came a bit closer and offered Auggie her lead and he followed her into the garden where Tom, Jeremy and two other class mates were playing.

Jeremy spotted his father as soon as Auggie stepped onto the terrace.

„Daddy, we have been playing soccer. I made three goals and the others only one!"

Jeremy was proud of his achievements.

„You are a great player" Auggie said „But now we have to go home. Mum will be there in a while and we will have dinner"

„Can´t we play a little bit longer?" Jeremy asked

„No, you have had the whole afternoon together. You can continue playing tomorrow. We really have to leave now. Besides, we will have chicken and potato salad today."

„Great, that is my favourite dish" Jeremy grabbed his school bag and his jacket from the chair on the terrace and took Auggie´s hand leading the way to the door.

„Bye Mrs. Henderson" Jeremy said and waved before he led his father down the three stairs.

When Auggie unlocked the door of his house he could already hear Annie working in the kitchen. She had just heated the oven and was about to push the chicken in.

„We are back" Auggie called, folding his cane and leaving it on the dresser in the corridor.

Jeremy ran towards Annie and threw himself into her arms. „Mum, Daddy said I am a great soccer player. I made three goals in one match!"

„Wow!" Annie was impressed „Maybe you´re gonna be a soccer pro one day, my son."

Then, Jeremy ran up the stairs to his room and when he had put his school bag on his desk chair, he sat down on the floor and continued with his Lego house.

„How was your first day Teacher Anderson" Annie teased and nudged her husband.

„I think it went well...although..." Auggie stopped

„Although what? Spill it Auggie Anderson" Annie was curious to learn the whole story.

„Well. it brought back memories of my first days at the centre when I had just gone blind and those memories were not very pleasant." Auggie admitted.

„I see" Annie said in a sympathetic tone and then she placed a kiss on Auggie´s mouth after hugging him tightly.

„I know what you have gone through. But that is past tense, you have gotten over it and you have created yourself a whole new life despite being blind. You can be very proud of your achievements"

„I am" Auggie said and Annie could see what he was trying to hide. His eyes were getting wet but he would not let out what he felt. After all he was still a soldier.


	9. Chapter 9

Annie and Auggie family and home part 9

Auggie sat in the lounge room, the place where the teachers and instructors of the centre used to meet or take a break between two lessons. His hands flew across the pages on the table in front of him. He was reading the schedule for the next three weeks.

He had more lessons than before. Up till now, he had only worked until noon every day. But from the next week on, he would have to stay until 4 p.m. every day. In Langley he could more or less leave as he wanted i.e. He could work overtime and come in later the following day. Here, however, there were fix schedules that had to be obeyed and he had no point in complaining about that.

On the other hand, this schedule would give him more time to investigate secretly what was happening. After a week, he still had no clue who the leak at the centre was. He had not really made friends with one of the teachers yet. Some of them were blind as well, some of them were sighted. That concerned mainly the O & M instructors who taught the blind students how to get around safely and independently by using the white cane for orientation.

Auggie was the only person sitting in that room and busy with reading his schedule when he heard somebody else enter. The person was talking on the phone and the voice was not familiar.

The man continued his phone conversation whilst taking a seat on the opposite end of the table. After a minute or so he hung up and started unpacking his messenger bag. He looked over to Auggie and said „Oh, a new face here, I have been on vacation for three weeks, didn´t know we had a new teacher here" and then he got up, went over to Auggie and introduced himself.

„My name is Garret, I am one of the O & M teachers here. I have been working here for quite a while now"

„My name is August Anderson" Auggie extended his hand and Garret took it and they shook hands.

„I started working last week. Mrs. Garcia had a vacancy in IT and I was looking for a new job" Auggie smiled. His cover story had to be credible.

„How long have you been working with computers" Garret was curious.

„Well, almost all my life. I had already a computer when I was a kid. Later on, I got a degree in computer science and for a while I worked for a provider of computers and IT accessories."

„Do you mind me asking how long you have been blind?"

„A bit more than 9 years, besides I took my first O & M lessons right here" Auggie replied before he felt for the lid of his watch and opened it. He read the time and said

„It was nice talking to you but I have my next lesson in 5 minutes" And with these words Auggie grabbed his messenger bag, unfolded his cane and left the room. Two doors down the hall, the next group of students was already waiting for him and he had to be punctual.

The next three hours just flew by again and Auggie was extremely busy explaining everything to his students. He was a patient and competent teacher and the students liked his sense of humour.

When the last student had left Auggie packed his messenger bag and left. Walking through the glass door, he suddenly heard a familiar voice talk again not far away from where he stood. It was Garret. Presumably he thought that he was alone and he sounded really annoyed when he said

„I don´t know what you want from me, I do all I can...no...I ….."

and then Auggie heard Garrett talk in Arabic.

Given the fact, that Auggie spoke some Arabic, too, he got the content of the conversation. It looked like he had the first real hint of who could be behind the weapons dealings.

Trying to be inconspicuous Auggie faked a phone call himself. Then he heard Garret come over to him.

„Hey there, did your day go well?" He asked, but his tone sounded suspicious.

„Yeah, it did, I just called a taxi. It should be here in a while" Auggie said trying to sound casual.

Garret gave him a curious look and walked away.

Fourty-five minutes later Auggie was back at home. When he opened the door Jeremy flew like a whirlwind right into his arms. Sandra the babysitter had taken care of him and now she grabbed her bag and left.

„See you tomorrow Mr. Anderson she said and walked through the door".

„Oh...oh...let me just fold up my cane and put my bag down" Auggie said before he picked up his son and lifted him up to his own eye level.

„How did school go today?"

„Well...I learned a couple of new letters today and..." and then he stopped

„And what?" Auggie asked, sensing that something was bothering his son.

„Oh nothing..." Jeremy said but the tone told Auggie he was hiding something.

„Jeremy, I can feel there is something wrong, talk to me..."

„I´d better not Daddy...I ...I don´t want to make you sad"

„Why would you make me sad?"

„It is just...the other kids are being jerks" Jeremy said

„Why are they jerks?"

„Promise me not to be sad, when I tell you" Jeremy replied

„I promise, so spill it"

„During lunch break two of my classmates were making fun of you. They grabbed a tree branch and used it as a cane and...and..." Jeremy was almost on the verge of tears

„Then what?" Auggie asked, hearing that his son was about to cry.

„Then...then...they...they..." Jeremy sobbed...They said that you look weird with that white cane in your hand... and ...and...that blind people are stupid...and...that... that I was stupid, too for having a father who cannot see..."

„Oh come on Jeremy..." Auggie hugged his son tightly and patted his head, gently stroking the dark blond hair of his boy.

„You should not listen to them. Of course, I am blind, and I am using a cane, but that does not make me any less than other dads. And besides...you and I know that I am not stupid and you are not stupid either. Just let them talk and don´t listen to them.

Jeremy wiped away the tears from his cheeks with the right sleeve of his shirt before he said.

„You are not sad Daddy?"

„No, I am not sad. That is just the way it is. I have heard so many things already. It is nothing that would really bother me, don´t worry"

Auggie felt for the face of his son, dried the last tears with his hanky from the pocket of his trousers and said.

„Come on, let´s make some dinner, Mum is going to arrive soon and we will have Spaghetti Bolognese."

Auggie wrapped an apron around his waist and told Jeremy to get the pot for the noodles out of the cupboard. Jeremy grabbed the huge metal pot and handed it over to his father. Auggie walked over to the sink, trailing his hand along the surface of the kitchen counter, filled the pot with water and put it on the stove.

Then, he felt for the tactile dots , to find the right temperature and turned the knob on the stove. A few minutes later, the water was boiling and Auggie threw in the noodles. Annie had already prepared the Bolognese sauce and Auggie got the other pot from the fridge and set in on the stove as well. Shortly after, the Bolognese sauce was bubbling as well and Auggie started laying the table.

When he was done, he heard the door open. Annie walked in, carrying a basket full of groceries. She had stopped at the supermarket on her way back from Langley and had bought cucumber, yoghurt, butter and a couple of other things to fill the fridge again.

„Hey guys, it looks like you have been busy in the kitchen"

Annie set the basket down on the kitchen counter and started unpacking the groceries.

When she was done, the noodles were ready and she poured the hot water into the sink. Auggie meanwhile took off his apron and called for Jeremy to come down to have dinner.

The three of them took a seat at the table and after a few seconds Jeremy´s mouth was red with tomato sauce.

„You look like a clown" Annie stated and went to grab a napkin from the kitchen drawer. She handed it over to Jeremy.

„Here, wipe your mouth a bit, circus clown!"

Auggie smiled, but deep inside he somehow wished he could see all of that. Those were the tiny moments in life when he was yearning for being sighted again. But it was clear, that his sight was gone for ever and irrevocably destroyed"

Jeremy took the napkin and started wiping on his mouth until Annie was satisfied with the result.

Three hours later, Jeremy was already in bed and Annie and Auggie sat on the couch listening to some Jazz music and were sipping on a glass of Bordeaux wine.

Auggie was lost in thought. Annie realized that and after a while she asked him

„What is going on with you? You are so quiet. I guess there is something bothering you, am I right?"

Auggie hesitated a few seconds, searching for the right words before he replied

„Annie am I a good father?"

Annie looked at him in surprise „Why do you ask? For me, you are the best father I could imagine for our son"

Auggie turned a bit towards Annie attempting to meet her gaze „Sometimes, I am not sure of that. You know...today Jeremy came home telling me that the other kids at school had been teasing him. They called him stupid and they laughed about me and my cane and about me being blind. Our son was really devastated because of all that."

„Auggie Anderson, I did not know you had so little self confidence. This is not the guy who has gone on the hardest missions, who has the best hacking skills one could imagine and who is one of the best spies ever"

„Well Annie this is not exactly about me...it is more or less about our son... I mean ….I have suffered enough when I went blind, I adapted...but I do not want my kid to suffer now because I am different"

„Auggie Anderson you have just answered your own question perfectly. If you were a bad father you would never give these things so much thought. And this is why I love you so much"

And then Annie slung his arms around Auggie´s neck, pulled him a bit closer and kissed him passionately on his mouth.


	10. Chapter 10

Auggie and Annie family and home part 10

Auggie sat in the classroom. He was waiting for his next group to arrive. Two hours with the first participants were already over and he had ten minutes time in between. He rose from his desk and walked over to the lounge room to get himself some coffee. He did not use this cane for the short way anymore. The room was only two doors further down the hall and so he just slightly trailed his right hand along the wall.

When he arrived he heard that a couple of other instructors were already in the room and chatting. He slowly made his way to the coffeemaker, felt for a cup on the shelf above and poured himself a cup. He noticed that Garret was in the room as well. He heard him talk to somebody else. Auggie´s brain started rattling. How did he get more information about Garret without raising any suspicion?

Being a spy was one thing, but being a blind spy was something else and it increased the risks to be uncovered. Here, he was alone in all this. No Annie so far who could help and lend him her eyes so to speak.

On his way back into the classroom Auggie thought about a way to get to Garret. And then he had an idea. He would tap Garret´s cell phone. The only thing was that he needed to get access to that device without being suspicious. After a while, he had an idea and he hoped it would work.

Five minutes later the next group of students slowly dropped into the classroom and Auggie started his lesson by explaining how to handle the refreshable Braille display. Everybody listened and after ten more minutes the students were busy to try out what Auggie had just explained to them.

„Mr. Anderson?"

„Yes" Auggie followed the voice and slowly walked over to the second row ,where Sarah, one of the students had called him from.

„I don´t know whether I have done something wrong, but my Braille display does not seem to work. I cannot feel any Braille dots coming up"

„Let me see" Auggie pressed one of the buttons on the Braille display and then slid his fingertips across the Braille line and just like Sarah had told him, nothing happened.

„Must be some sort of software mistake or something with the settings" Auggie stated. „I think we will get to the solution of the problem soon. Just let me get my headphones"

Auggie headed back to his desk, opened his messenger bag and took out his Grado headphones, then he went back to Sarah´s desk connected his headphones and asked „Would you please let me sit on your chair, I need to check on something" Sarah got up, stood beside him and listened to Auggie typing.

And within a minute, Auggie was busy. He entered a couple of key combinations and finally got access to the system. Ten more minutes and he had solved the problem. The Braille display worked again.

„I think I got it" Auggie said with a smile. „You can take a seat again and continue working"

Sarah was stunned „Wow, that is really impressive. You seem to be a real computer genius. If I did not know you were blind I would not believe it"

„Thanks for the compliment. But it took me a while to get there" Auggie replied and continued walking around the room, checking if every student was making progress using the Braille display.

Lunch break was getting closer and Auggie had a plan. He needed to talk to Garret. After his last lesson, he walked back to the teacher´s lounge where he presumed to find Garret with the other instructors. He was lucky. Garret really was there and so Auggie took the opportunity to talk to him.

„Hey Garret, it is lunch time how about having a Pizza together? I am in for something else today than the cafeteria food here"

„Sounds like an idea, so why not, the Pizzeria is just around the corner"

„That is why I suggested it" Auggie replied.

„Let me just finish my text message." Garret said and continued typing on his phone.

„Sure, no hurry we got time" Auggie smiled

Seconds later Garret had put back his phone into his pocket and grabbed his jacket from the chair.

„Do you want to take my arm?" He asked

„Yeah, if you don´t mind" Garret touched Auggie´s hand with the back of his and Auggie grabbed his elbow. He was always grateful when he met people who were familiar with his situation.

Flashes of memories of his first time at this centre came up and Auggie saw himself standing in the hall with his new white cane, feeling lost and disoriented until his instructor offered him his arm again.

Garret led Auggie to the restaurant and up the three stairs to the door. Fifteen minutes after, they had taken a seat at the Pizzeria DA GIANNA a few hundred metres away from the centre. Auggie ordered Pizza Prosciutto Funghi and Garret Spaghetti Frutti di Mare.

„Since when have you been working here" Auggie started the conversation.

Garret took a sip of his beer and replied „I started working here about two and a half years ago. My wife had just left me and I moved over from New York. I needed a change to get over my failure as a husband".

„I see" Auggie said in a compassionate tone. „I consider myself lucky, my wife and I we get along well and my kid is great, too"

Five minutes, later the waitress arrived with their Pizza and noodles. Auggie slowly felt for the napkin and the cutlery on the table and then he asked the Garret. „Would you mind cutting my Pizza into quarters, that makes it easier for me".

„Sure", Garret took Auggie´s cutlery and cut the Pizza for him.

Sometimes it was still a bit humiliating for Auggie to ask for help when he went to a restaurant. But he did not want to make a fool of himself just because of his stupid pride.

The Pizza was good and Garret also enjoyed his Spaghetti with seafood.

„So, I take it that you are a computer geek?" Garret asked after a while

„Yes, so to speak but teaching is something I have never tried before. I was not sure whether I could do it. But now I enjoy it. It is fun to help others. I guess that is my way to give back. I mean...I would not have made it after my accident without the help of the centre" Auggie really meant what he said. It was not just a part of his cover story. He really felt he owed to the people who had helped him find some new self confidence after his accident in Iraq.

Auggie and Garret chatted for a while whilst eating and Auggie had the feeling that he was getting closer to the secret he was about to investigate. He already had a plan how to get to the next stage of his investigation.

An hour later both men were back and their jobs at the centre continued. Auggie had the last two lessons for that day and Garret two O and M lessons including field trips.

At 4:30 pm Auggie left. He made his way to the bus stop. On his way home he would pick up his son at school. He did not do that very often but Annie would come home late and so he was the one to get to school and talk to the teacher.

Twenty minutes later, the bus stopped, Auggie got up from his seat, made his way to the door, felt for the steps with his cane and stepped out. Twenty steps straight on and then to the right and he found the door of Jeremy´s primary school.

Entering the hall, he already heard the voices of kids. He trailed his right hand a bit along the wall, counting the doors. The third door led to Jeremy´s classroom. He knocked and shortly after the teacher opened. She had just finished the lesson and the kids were packing their bags to go home.

„Nice to see you Mr. Anderson" Mrs. Williams was as friendly as Auggie remembered her.

„Oh you remember my name, we have not really talked to each other since Jeremy´s first schol day. It is usually my wife who picks him up after school"

Mrs. Williams now felt a bit awkward when she replied „Well, I don´t know whether I can say that without being impolite...but...there are not many fathers here using a white cane ….and so...so I made a mental note so to speak."

Auggie turned a bit more towards the teacher, trying to meet her gaze „I don´t take any offense, of course you are right, this cane in my hand does not make me the most inconspicuous guy here at school"

Now Mrs. Williams smiled again. She appreciated that Auggie took her comment with his own sense of humour „I am glad I did not make a mistake by telling you that" She said before she called Jeremy.

The little boy did not look very happy when Auggie took his hand and both walked to the bus stop.

Auggie could not see his son´s face but Jeremy was very quiet and that told him that something was wrong.

„Is there something you would like to talk about?" Auggie asked whilst they were waiting for the bus to arrive.

„The other kids are being jerks again" Jeremy said and looked down on his feet. I hate Kevin and Eric, they are so mean to me"

Auggie had listened to his son and then he asked „Let me guess, is it again about me and the cane?"

Jeremy looked up again and replied „Well...yes...it is. This time they were kind of trying to walk with their eyes closed and their hands outstretched and they would always repeat _blind and stupid , blind and stupid..."_

Auggie himself was not hurt. He knew that kids at a certain age could be rude and mean but he felt sorry for his son who was suffering from that behaviour. And so he said.

„I think I have an idea how I can help you. But I have to talk to your teacher first"

Two days after, there was „project day" at school, as Mrs. Williams called it. During the first two lessons the kids were supposed to make new experiences.

Auggie took Jeremy to school. He had taken a day off at the centre because he had worked overtime the days before.

It was about 7:45 am and most of the kids were already there. School started at 8:00. Auggie talked to Mrs. Williams whilst Jeremy took his seat next to his friend Tom and unpacked his school bag.

When finally all the kids had arrived, Mrs. Williams introduced Auggie to the class.

„Good morning kids, this is Mr. Anderson and as some of you already know, he is Jeremy´s father and he is blind." Then Mrs. Williams looked around the room facing each single kid and asked

„Does anyone of you know what blind means?"

One of the kids in the last row replied „It means he cannot see"

„Yes that is correct" Mrs. Williams confirmed.

And as a sign that it was now his turn to speak, Mrs. Williams touched Auggie´s elbow and he started talking to the class.

„Good morning kids, as Mrs. Williams has already said, I cannot see. But being unable to see does not mean that I am supposed to sit at home and do nothing. There is a lot that even a blind person can do"

And then Auggie started to unpack his bagpack. He had brought his Braille books, a short folding cane and a couple of scarves.

„Maybe you will understand better what it means to be blind when you try it" Auggie grabbed two scarves and Mrs. Williams asked Kevin and Eric to come forward. Mrs. Williams now blindfolded the two boys and led them over to Auggie.

Auggie felt for Kevin´s hand and asked „So how do you feel now?"

„I am a bit scared" The usually cheeky boy who was always up for a joke and who loved teasing his class mates was suddenly very quiet.

„Would you like to try to walk with a cane?" Auggie asked . Then he unfolded a short folding cane that he had brought from the centre and which had the perfect size for a kid. Again, he felt for the boy´s hand and handed him the cane. Then he showed him how to swing the cane back and forth whilst moving slowly forward. Kevin slowly moved around with Auggie right behind him.

He suddenly trusted a man he had been making fun about the days before.

When they reached the end of the classroom, Auggie asked „Would you be able to find your chair?"

Kevin slowly extended his hand and felt for the table. „Are you here Marc?" He asked trying to talk to the boy who sat next to him"

„Yes I am" the Marc replied and Kevin slowly walked around the table using his hand for orientation until he had found his seat"

Now it was Erics turn. „Would you like to know how you can read with your hands?" Auggie asked the boy.

„Yes" Eric replied and then Auggie took his hand, walked him over to the teacher´s desk where he had stood before and opened the book for Braille instruction. Then he took the boy´s hand and put it on the first page.

„These are the first letters of the ABC" He explained „Being blind does not mean that someone is stupid and cannot read or write. There is just a different way how to do it"

Eric touched the little Braille bumps underneath his fingertips and he was impressed. „Can you really read that Mr. Anderson"

„Of course I can, and if the class wants, I am going to read something to you later"

„Yes please" some of the kids said having listened to Auggie´s conversation.

„Would you also like to try walking with a cane?" Auggie asked now, turning a bit towards Eric after closing the book.

„Yes"

„Okay, then let´s do it" Auggie handed over the cane that Kevin had used previously and walked the kid through the room. Finally Mrs. Williams led Eric to his seat and took his blindfold off.

„Kevin you may also take off the scarf now" she said and Kevin started to open the knot on the back of his head, trying to take off the scarf.

Then Auggie slowly walked back to the teacher´s desk, felt for the chair, sat down and unpacked a fairy tale book for kids. Then he started reading _„Once there was a little girl called Isabella she was an orphan and she had a dog called Bonnie, Bonnie was not a regular dog he could do magic and so one day Isabella and the dog..."_

The whole classroom had become quiet and the kids were listening to Auggie´s story, admiring how is hands flew across the page whilst reading to them.


	11. Chapter 11

Annie and Auggie Family and Home part 11

The days after Auggie´s visit at school were different for Jeremy. The boys who had been teasing him before for having a blind father, had become extremely „tame" and quiet. The lesson that Auggie had given them, showed its impact and Jeremy started to enjoy going to school again.

„Your Dad is a nice man" Kevin said one morning during their break when all the kids were playing outside.

„I did not know that blind people can read" one of the other kids said.

„Of course they can" Jeremy replied. „As you have seen, my Dad can read stories with his hands and he reads something to me every evening when I go to bed"

At the rehab centre Auggie had just started his second lesson. „May I have your attention please" he said to the group.

„I would like you to try out something new. Please open your internet browser, search for the page _Vision Issues, _and in 45 minutes we will talk about the content of that page. You can either use the screen reader or the Braille display or even both if you like"

Whilst the students were busy with looking up the information, Auggie left the room to get himself some coffee. Caffeine was almost an addiction for him. Without a decent dose of coffee, it was hard for him to function. He walked to the lounge room and made his way to the coffee maker. During lunch break he had planned to talk to Garret again and to start phase two of his plan. He just hoped it would work.

Back in the classroom, Auggie listened to the students typing and sipped on his strong, black coffee. After a while, he was a bit lost in thought. Since he had started working at the centre, he had more and more flashbacks. The events of the time when he was a patient and student at the rehab centre for the blind, came back to him in his mind and some of the memories were not very pleasant. Initially, after going blind, he had had a really hard time, accepting the cane as a helpful tool and he had never assumed, that he might ever work with a computer again. Since then, a lot of time had gone by and his life had changed significantly.

Sometimes he asked himself whether he would be as satisfied with his life as he was now, if he was still sighted. Nobody could answer that question. He had a lot more than most people. He had a job that he loved, he had colleagues who appreciated him for his capabilities, he had a wife, a house and a great kid. What else could he want?

Three quarters of an hour were over. Auggie felt for the lid of his tactile watch opened it, checked the time and said „Time is up. I want you to stop your research now and give me a summary of the content of the page. Anybody here who wants to start?"

„I would like to" Silvia, in the first row said

„Okay, what have you found out?" Auggie asked

„There are 20 million vision impaired people in the USA, most of them are not blind but seriously sight impaired."

„Good" Auggie said „What else have you found out?"

„Most people who are blind, went blind as adults and cannot read Braille" Jason, a man in the second row said.

„That is correct" Auggie confirmed again.

He continued the question and answer procedure for a while before he said. „For homework I want you to research a page that you like and give me a summary of the content. And don´t forget to write down the link, so that I can check."

The lesson was over and Auggie grabbed his messenger bag and his folding cane and went over to the teachers´ lounge. He had switched off his cell phone for a special purpose.

When he entered the room, he heard Garret talk to the other instructors and made his way towards his seat. Taking his leather jacket that hung over the back of the chair, Auggie asked.

„Garret, could you do me a favour? I need to call my wife but my cell phone doesn´t work, maybe it is the battery, maybe something else. Could I just borrow your phone for a short call?"

„Of course" Garret said.

„Do you want me to dial the number for you, I mean my phone is otherwise not accessible for you"

„That would be nice" Auggie replied. „Would you mind me taking the phone and talk on the corridor. It is some sort of private call"

„No, it is okay, just take it and give it back to me when you are done" Garret answered, dialled the number and Auggie took the phone and swinging his cane back and forth he walked to the door.

Once outside, he listened whether somebody else was there. He heard no sound, no other voice and quickly opened the back of the phone. His fingertips slid across the inside and he inserted a tiny bug, the size of a needle and put the cover back."

Now the phone was bugged and Langley would be able to listen to the conversations. When he was done. He took the phone in his hand again, held it up to his ear level and pretended to be talking. When he finally heard the door open he quickly said „Bye darling, see you in two hours...kisses" and slightly touched the button on the right of the phone, faking the end of a call.

„Thanks for the phone" Auggie said when he had entered the lounge room again and handed the phone over to Garret again. „May I invite you for a coffee now?"

Auggie asked and Garret nodded and replied „Sure, I appreciate your offer. Could use a coffee and a sandwich now"

„Okay then let´s go to the café at the end of the street" Auggie suggested and set his cane in motion. This time, he did not take Garret´s arm. Five minutes later, they sat at the café and Auggie ordered a cheese sandwich and a Cappuccino, Garret chose a tuna sandwich and Caffé Latte.

„You already have a good reputation among teachers and students" Garret said after a while. „This is something you can really be proud of. I mean, given the fact that you are not a teacher, you do a great job"

„Thanks, that is very kind of you" Auggie was proud and relieved. His plan seemed to work and that was what he needed to get further with his investigations. If they really took him for a teacher, it would be a lot easier to get what he needed.

Auggie slowly felt for the plate to his right and took a bite of his sandwich. On one hand, he had to admit that he liked Garret, on the other hand he had a job to do. These were situations when he sometimes hated his job. He had to deceive a person he liked. But if this person was involved into dirty businesses, it was easier to do the job. Up till now, Auggie only suspected that Garret was in trouble, but he had no real evidence, at least not yet.

„How long will you stay with us?" Garret asked

„I am not sure. My contract is six weeks, but if they need me a bit longer, I will stay, in case I have not found anything else" Auggie answered.

Garret liked Auggie as well and so he said „You really fit into our team.

There are not many teachers here who can teach IT things so well. And you know what you are talking about, I mean, you know it first hand so to speak because you are blind, too. The other two teachers are sighted. They sometimes cannot relate exactly to the students´ problems when they learn."

„I am glad to hear that the others appreciate my work" Auggie smiled and took a sip of his Cappuccino whilst Garret munched on a piece of his tuna sandwich.

They chatted for a while whilst enjoying their lunch break and finally Auggie called the waitress, paid and gave her a tip before he left with Garret.

The last lesson after the lunch break passed quickly and Auggie was looking forward to going home.

„Please read the page that I have just given you and we will talk about it tomorrow"

He said, before the students left the room. Then he packed his messenger bag, took his cane and walked to the bus stop. Fourty minutes after, he unlocked the door of his home. Annie was already there and sat in the kitchen reading a newspaper. When Jeremy heard Auggie come home, he ran down the stairs and like a whirlwind he threw himself into Auggie´s arms.

„Daddy, Daddy...school was good today. Mrs. Williams said that I am really good at reading already and the other kids do not laugh about you anymore. Kevin even said that he likes you"

Jeremy was excited and Auggie was glad that his little boy was happy again

„Hey, that is so great to hear, I am happy things are going better at school"

Auggie said before he walked over to the fridge to get some juice for Jeremy and himself. He grabbed two glasses from the shelf above the sink, put his index finger over the rim and poured slowly two glasses of orange juice.

„Daddy, can we continue with reading the dots?"

„Sure, if you like. Get the book from my desk and I will show you the next letters"

Jeremy ran up the stairs again and grabbed the Braille book from his father´s desk. Seconds later, he sat at the dining table with Auggie by his side and slid his finger across the book. Annie watched them looking up every now and then from her newspaper.

„What is this letter Daddy?" Auggie felt for the dots under his fingertips

„That would be a D, E. F, G and H" he answered and Jeremy kept sliding his hand across the page.

„Do you think I can do it with my eyes closed Dad?"

„Well, try it...maybe you can."

Jeremy closed his eyes and tried to figure out the shape of the dots.

„Is this an E Dad?"

Auggie followed with his fingertips and confirmed „Yes, that´s right. You did a great job"

Jeremy smiled „reading dots is fun" he said and opened his eyes again to look at Auggie

His son´s comment had made Auggie think. For his kid reading Braille was fun. It was like an interesting game. But for him it was a necessity. He had no other choice and it had been anything else but fun, when he had started reading with his hands. There had been a lot of frustration about his loss of sight. He had been quite reluctant to learn it, until he realized that there was no other way.

„What is wrong Daddy?" Jeremy had noticed that Auggie was quiet.

„Oh nothing, I was just a bit lost in thought, nothing more"

Jeremy was a very intuitive kid „Did I make you sad?"

„No, you didn´t, don´t worry."

Annie had noticed the change of Auggie´s expression and she assumed, that it had to do with Jeremy´s question. „I guess yo should stop now for today." She said „Dad is going to show you the next letters tomorrow if you like."

Now, Auggie rose from the table and went up the stairs. He put the book on his desk and sighed. Teaching at the centre and teaching his son Braille brought back memories. Memories of the time when he had just lost his sight. He thought he had overcome the grief about his loss of sight but from time to time everything was coming right back to him like a boomerang. He hated this feeling and above all, he hated showing vulnerability.


	12. Chapter 12

Auggie and Annie family and home part 12

Auggie had taken a day off at the centre. He used that day to get to Langley and to talk to Joan and his colleagues in person. He got out of the taxi, unfolded his cane and walked to the door. Entering the holy halls of the CIA he swept his cane back and forth and walked directly to the DPD. Eric Barber was sitting at his desk. He had already started with the surveillance of Garret Mason and Auggie was curious to hear what his colleague and buddy had found out.

„Hey Auggie, good to see you here again" Barber said, munching on a cheese toast.

„Good to be back" Auggie replied and walked towards Barber. He felt for the edge of the desk and leaned against it, holding his cane vertically and resting his hands on top.

„Have you got any news for me my friend?"

„Yes, indeed I have"

Auggie heard the sound of rustling of paper and a second later Barber read to him a list of names. Garret had made a variety of phone calls. Most of them were not of importance but one call had gotten Barber interested. Garret had made a call to an Arabic guy named Ahmed Ben Alid. Barber´s and Hollman´s research had brought more interesting facts and results. Ben Alid was a well known weapons dealer and had already been involved in a couple of dirty business in the far and middle east. However, it was still unclear how Garret had gotten involved in all of that. Maybe in a few days they would know more. Until then they had to be patient.

„Looks like we are getting closer" Auggie said, happy that the phone with the bug inside had proved to be helpful.

„You are still a great spy, despite..." Barber said and then he stopped.

„You can say it" Auggie replied „You wanted to say..._.despite being blind._...right?"

„Yeah, but I did not want to sound rude" Barber apologized

„It is not rude, it is just a fact and being a blind spy is not so easy" and then with a grin he added „I guess there are not so many of that kind in the USA and elsewhere"

An hour later, Auggie was back at home. He wanted to use the day for things he usually had not so much time for. First he wanted to go to the gym. He walked into the bedroom, grabbed a t-shirt, a pair of trainers and sweatpants and put it into his backpack. He added some shower gel and a towel before he walked down the stairs again. Then he grabbed his cane and his leather jacket and made his way to the bus stop.

Ten minutes later the bus arrived. Auggie found the door with the tip of his cane, held the cane vertically to count the stairs, showed the ticket to the driver and searched for a free seat.

The bus was almost empty at that time and it did not take long until he arrived. He was a member of the fitness club and could visit as often as he liked per week. The last weeks however had been busy and he had not found much time for his physical workout.

Auggie made his way to the locker room. He was alone in the room and started to change. Then he felt for the lockers and counted the doors. The 5th locker was empty. He inserted a coin, put his clothes and backpack in and added his neatly folded cane. He did not need it at the gym and he knew his way around perfectly.

His first stop was the treadmill. After a minute or so Auggie had found his rhythm and then he heard somebody else arrive, taking the treadmill nex to his.

The young lady looked over to Auggie and seemed to be particularly fond of what she saw.

Auggie´s light-grey tank top clearly showed his well developed muscles and his dark hair curled around his forehead and his neck. Auggie did not take notice of the lady, instead kept on running concentrating on his rhythm.

The lady started running as well but once in a while she looked over to Auggie, wondering why he would not respond with a glance over to her. After 5 minutes or so she started talking to Auggie.

„Is this your regular place for workouts? I have not seen you before." She said, still taking in Auggie´s posture and his whole appearance.

„I am a regular guest here, yes...but I have not been here for a while...too much work." He said, turning slightly his head into the direction of the female voice.

„I see..." The lady said. She was in her early 30´s and had blond hair that she had put up in a ponytail. She was slim, had blue eyes and was not very tall. She wore a blue t-shirt and light-blue sweatpants combined with white trainers.

„I became a member here about three weeks ago. I have been here a few times but your face did not seem familiar" She added.

„Well I have been a member here for 4 years already but sometimes the job does not allow to come here every week, too much work" Auggie explained.

And to maintain his cover Auggie said „I am a teacher for IT"

„I am a nurse at the University hospital. It is not always easy either. With all the different patients and really rare and scary conditions, but I like my job. Could not imagine to do anything else"

„That is good" Auggie replied and got off the treadmill. He grabbed his towel, slung it around his neck and felt his way to the bench to start weight-lifting.

Only then, the blond lady noticed that Auggie could not see and she stared at him in disbelief with her eyes and her mouth open wide.

Auggie started lifting weights and enjoyed the physical activity. The weeks at the rehab centre had not let him enough spare time for his workouts, but he needed this distraction to feel good and to relax. This was one of the few things that had not changed after his accident and injury in Iraq. After around 90 minutes Auggie was soaked with sweat and exhausted but he felt good. He grabbed his towel and slowly walked towards the locker room. When he got there he trailed his hand along the lockers, counted and found the 5th one, opened it, grabbed his shower gel and walked over to the adjacent room where the showers and restrooms were located.

The water from the shower had a refreshing impact after the workout and Auggie quickly got dressed, packed his bag and walked over to the cafeteria to get a coffee before leaving. Sweeping his cane in an arc before him, he found a free table and waited for the waitress to arrive.

Seconds later, the middle-aged woman took his order and shortly after returned with Auggie´s coffee. Auggie felt for the cup and took a sip. He was a bit lost in thought when all of a sudden a female voice next to him said

„May I take a seat?"

First , Auggie was a bit confused, then he realized that the voice belonged to the young lady who had talked to him before.

„Of course" he replied feeling for his cup and taking the next sip of black coffee.

„We talked at the gym, right?"

Auggie asked, assuming that the lady had realized he was blind.

„Yeah, we did. I actually did not immediately realize that you are..." and then she stopped...looking over to Auggie who had got the verbal cue already and finished the sentence for her.

„You mean that I am blind"

„Yes, I did not want to be rude"

„Calling me blind is not rude, it is a fact I cannot deny" Auggie said and a little smile played around his lips.

„Have you always been blind"

„No, I was a soldier and lost my sight in a bomb attack in Iraq"

„Sounds scary"

„Yes, it was. I was the only one who survived, all my other buddies died"

„To be honest I have never met a blind person and so I did not know how to react."

„Don´t worry, you did nothing wrong. When I first met my wife she had never met a blind person before either but she quickly adapted to my sometimes very special needs. But I need to go now. I have to pick up my son from school"

„It was nice to talk to you" The blond lady said, when Auggie rose from his chair and grabbed his backpack and his cane. He left the money for his coffee on the table before he made his way to the door.

About 45 minutes later he arrived at Jeremy´s school. One kid after the other left the school building and after a while Auggie heard his son´s voice.

„Daddy, Daddy...I am here"

Then Auggie made a few steps forward into the direction of Jeremy´s voice and opened his arms.

„Hey champion, how was school today?"

„It was good. We have written our first dictation and I did pretty well Mrs. Williams said"

Jeremy was proud when he told Auggie about his first English dictation.

„Sound like a pretty successful day" Auggie said and took Jeremy´s hand, about to leave, when he heard the voice of a kid next to him.

„Hello Mr. Anderson. I really liked it to use your cane. That was really interesting last week"

That was Kevin´s voice. Auggie´s lesson at school had made a huge impression on the cheeky little boy.

„I am glad you liked it. Maybe now you can understand better what it is like when you cannot see"

Auggie answered and started to walk.

Back home again, Annie was already there. She had had a hard day in Langley and was a bit in a bad mood. She had argued with Joan about a mission that had gone wrong. Now, she was busy in the kitchen and about to push a homemade Pizza with cheese, onions, Salami and peppers into the oven.

„Hmm...Pizza" Jeremy looked into the oven „One of my favourite dishes"

„Yeah I know and your Dad and I like it, too"

"Can I have orange juice with my Pizza?"

" I am afraid there isn´t any left, you drank the last glass yesterday evening. I have to do some shopping tomorrow, but you can have apple juice"

Annie said, turning towards the fridge and grabbing a bottle with juice.

"I like apple juice, too"

Jeremy said, before he ran up the stairs and put his school bag onto his desk.

"Did you get any further with your mission" Annie asked

"I guess so. Barber has found out about a few calls Garret has made, we have to keep digging until we get to the bottom of the whole thing"

The kitchen was already filled with the scent of fresh Pizza and Annie started to lay the table whilst Auggie opened a bottle of white wine and got to glasses from the shelf above the sink.

Ten minutes later the kitchen timer beeped and Annie pulled the Pizza out of the oven.

"Come down, dinner is ready" Auggie called and seconds later Jeremy came down the stairs with his favourite dinosaur in his hand

"What did dinosaurs eat?" Jeremy asked

"Hmm...depends on the type of dinosaur. Some of them were vegetarians and just ate things like plants and vegetables and others would eat meat and smaller animals"

"And this one?" Jeremy held up his favourite dinosaur and handed it over to Auggie

"Well, to be honest I don´t know what type of dinosaur that is, they all look the same to me" Auggie said after he had assessed the rubber animal with his sensitive fingertips. Now Annie looked over from the kitchen counter where she was cutting Pizza pieces

"I don´t know either, but maybe we can find a picture of that dinosaur on the internet and find out what kind of dinosaur that is"

She said and carried a huge plate with Pizza slices to the dining table and set it right in the middle.

As usual, Jeremy sat on a chair with a huge cushion, that made it easier for him to reach the table.

"Hmm..that is good" Jeremy said, his mouth still full of Pizza.

Auggie slowly felt for the bottle on the table and started pouring a glass of wine for Annie and one for himself. He put his finger on the rim of the glass, checking when it was filled.

"I agree to my son" he said after the first bite "The Pizza is great" 


	13. Chapter 13

Auggie and Annie family and home part 13

Auggie walked through the room. The students were all busy with the task he had given them and he went from one desk to the next, checking whether everybody was getting along. He really started to like his job. At the beginning, he had been quite skeptical whether he would be a good teacher and he had feared to be in touch with so many blind people at a time because he sometimes still wanted to forget that he was different and that he could not see. But the job as an IT teacher was really rewarding and he liked most of the students.

While he was talking to the students, he heard his cell phone buzzing. He cautiously made his way across the room and grabbed the phone from his desk. He took the headset, to listen to the message and he was astonished. It was a message from Barber. They had found out more details about Garret and his friends. Obviously they were about to plan a meeting.

Bingo! Auggie thought.

Up til now, his job at the centre had really been rewarding. Not only that the students liked him, he had also made one step further into the right direction. His mission started to be a success and that relieved him.

After listening to the message Barber had sent him, he put the cell phone back into his messenger bag and started to think about the next step. He had to go to Langley and to talk in person with Barber, Hollman and Joan. He decided to take a cab to Langley after the last lesson. In an hour he would leave. He was curious what exactly Barber and the others from his team had found out.

A voice made Auggie come back to reality.

"Mr. Anderson, I have a question. Could you show me again how to change the settings of the screen reader?"

"Sure Liza" Auggie made his way to the second row, felt for the back of the third chair and seconds later his hands flew across the keyboard and he showed Liza what to do.

"You are such a good teacher" The young girl said. She was only 19 and had just lost her sight in a car accident.

"Thanks, I will take this as a compliment" Auggie smiled, before he walked back to his own desk. Then he felt for his tactile watch and checked the time. In 15 minutes he would be able to leave. He took out his phone again and made a call.

"Could you pick me up at the Rehab Centre for the Blind at 3:15 pm?"

"Sure" the young operator replied "I am going to send you a car. We will be right on time Mr. Anderson"

Half an hour later Auggie sat on the back seat of a yellow cab. He was curious what Barber and the other colleagues had found out.

Arriving in Langley, the driver opened the door for Auggie

"Can I help you Sir?" He asked politely.

"No, thank you. Just tell me where we stopped, so that I know which direction the entrance is"

"We are right in front of it. Should be about 50 m from here, straight on"

"Thanks" Auggie took out his wallet, paid the driver and set his cane in motion. Three minutes later, he walked into his office, where Barber was just typing on his keyboard.

"Hey buddy" Barber greeted him. As always chewing on some potato chips he had brought from home.

"Good to see you again. So to speak" Auggie smirke, felt for the edge of his round glass desk, folded his cane before he put it on the desk . "I am curious to learn what you have found out about my friend and colleague"

Barber swallowed the last of his chips crumbs before he continued

"Garret has made two calls. One yesterday night, and one today at 7:00 in the morning. He was talking in Arabic but I got Jonathan from SAD to translate for me. He speaks Arabic quite fluently. It looks like Garret is the contact for Sharif Al Sahid, a weapons dealer from Yemen. He seems to be involved into illegal weapons deals. It looks like a US guy named Phillip Michaelson uses Garret as a middle man between Al Sahid and himself. If Garret is caught, Michaelson will surely be denying that he knows him and Garret would be the one to blame."

"How can you be so sure?" Auggie asked

"Well, according to my research, Michaelson has a lot of dirt on his hands but nobody could ever find enough evidence against him to sue or prosecute him. He always finds somebody else to do the dirty jobs for him and HE makes the money, whilst the others end up in prison"

"So what have you planned now?" Auggie asked, turning a bit towards Barber, trying to meet his gaze.

"Well, I thought we will wait for the next few calls to get the details and the meeting point and then we will follow them secretly and try to catch them"

"I guess I should stop working at the centre now. We have bugged Garret´s phone and I am a bit unsure whether he will find out that I was behind all that. It would be safer if I came back to Langley" Auggie said.

"Maybe" Barber replied, watching Auggie´s skeptical expression. "Today is Thursday, I guess you would manage one more day at the centre before the weekend approaches"

"Yes, I will talk to the manager of the centre and she will surely be understanding. She said that I might resign as soon as I find something else. I mean, it was part of my cover to tell her that I am unemployed and that working at the centre is only an interim solution until I find a new job somewhere in IT"

"You are a real pro" Barber grinned and then he looked over to the door. "Joan is on her way" he said and seconds later, the glass door opened and Joan Campbell appeared in the door frame.

"Hey Auggie, good to see you again" Joan smiled, came a bit closer and patted Auggie´s right shoulder. "Have you already heard the good news?"

"Yeah, Eric has just read me in. I am glad that my efforts paid off. I guess my job at the centre is now done. I will resign on Monday. I don´t want to raise any sort of suspicion. We got what we wanted and that is the basic thing. Funny, that I really started to like my job as a teacher. I would not have guessed that it would be such a pleasure to teach other people and to help them."

"You have lots of talents" Joan Campbell said and Auggie could hear the smile in her voice.

"I have to leave now. Annie and I want to go shopping. I need some new shoes. Do you know where she is?"

"She is at the Smithonian today. I thought today was the right time to show up there and to maintain her cover as a museum clerk . I guess she will be back in half an hour. So if you would like to wait for her, you don´t need a taxi ride back home."

"Thanks Joan. I will wait for her then". Then Auggie grabbed a second chair, pulled it a bit closer and sat down at his desk next to Barber who had continued typing. It was a strange feeling for Auggie to a guest in his own office. But in a few days, he would be back and Barber would move over to his old desk next door.

Auggie listened to Barber typing and chatted with him. After around twenty minutes the door opened and Annie entered.

"Hey Darling" She walked over to Auggie, kissed him and pulled him into a warm embrace.

"Are you done for today?" Auggie asked, rising from his chair. He felt for his cane on his desk and unfolded it.

"Let´s go" he said and Annie offered him her arm and led him out of the office. Twenty minutes later, they were back home.

Jeremy was already waiting for them. His babysitter had picked him up from school and he was sitting at the kitchen table with a dinosaur puzzle.

"Mummy, Daddy..." Jeremy jumped off the chair and ran towards his parents. "We have walked through the forest and I have collected wonderful leaves and many chestnuts"

"Sounds like a wonderful day" Annie said and hugged her son tightly before she took off her coat and put her purse on the dresser in the corridor.

"Miss Williams said that in two weeks we should bring our father to school one morning if it is possible. We are supposed to talk about our father´s job"

Annie gasped and touched Auggie´s hand with the back of hers. Auggie smiled into her direction. Of course they could not tell the kids at school what Auggie did for a living.

"Will you come with me Daddy?" Jeremy asked with a pleading look that was of course lost on Auggie.

"Sure, I will come with you to school" He said and nudged Annie with his elbow.

Later in bed Annie said "Have you already thought about what you are going to tell the kids at school?"

"Of course" Auggie felt for Annie´s shoulder, wrapped his right arm around her and pulled her closer. She snuggled into his embrace and continued

"So what are you going to tell them at school?"

"Well, that is simple. I am in charge of the IT department in a big company. That is not even a lie. I just leave out the name of my employer" Auggie smirked and placed a soft kiss on Annie´s forehead. Then, Annie switched off the lights and snuggled down into Auggie´s arms before she fell asleep.

The next morning at the breakfast table, Auggie was very quiet. He was lost in thought, cradling his coffee mug with his hands. Annie looked up from her newspaper, gave him a questioning look and asked

„What is going on with you today, you seem to be miles away? Anything wrong?"

„No, not really, it is just...I need to resign at the centre today and I was just thinking how much I have learned to love that job. I mean...I am...I was able to give something back, I could do something for others who are in my position. It felt good not always to be the one in need. If you know what I mean."

„Of course" Annie swallowed. She knew how hard it was for her husband to talk about his feelings. He kept his emotions usually close to his vest and did not let others in, not even her, despite being his wife.

„On the other hand...coming back to the centre has also brought back lots of things and emotions that I had buried deep inside myself. I did not expect them to come to the surface again. I mean...I have been blind fore more than 9 years and I thought I had come to terms with my life...but now...seeing, meeting all these students, talking to them, has caused me to think of how I felt, when I was in rehab there and a lot of the anger, the fear, the insecurity and the frustration I felt back then came back to my mind and that scares me"

Now Annie put the newspaper down, and reached for Auggie´s hand with her left. She wrapped her hand around his and said

„You don´t need to feel ashamed for these feelings. I know, how much you hate to show vulnerability but after all we are all human and there is nothing bad about showing how you feel."

„Thank you my Darling" Auggie now got up from the table and pulled Annie into an embrace before he kissed her. „I cannot feel grateful enough to have found you" He said.


	14. Chapter 14

Annie and Auggie family and home part 14

"You definitely need some new jeans" Annie said. Auggie hated shopping, especially when he had to buy clothes. He hated to try an infinite number of trousers and he hated to dress and to undress again and again until he had found something. Moreover, he had to rely on the help of others regarding style, colour etc. and that made shopping even more complicated and annoying.

"Ok, I realize it does not make any sense to refuse. As soon as I am back from the centre, you can take me to the shopping mall but I will only allow you to take me to ONE shop. If I don´t find something there, we are done"

"Okay"Annie smiled, well knowing that Auggie could not resist her charm when she would try to convince him to walk into a second or third shop.

Then, Auggie grabbed is cane, his wallet, his messenger bag and left. He walked to the bus stop and he was so lost in thought, that he almost missed the bus stop sign and walked past it. After a few more steps, he turned, found the sign and waited for the bus to arrive.

Half an hour later he sat in the office of Mrs. Garcia. The director of the centre was a bit disappointed.

"Of course I can understand your decision Mr. Anderson but I had hoped you would stay with us a bit longer. You do an excellent job, the students like you and…to be honest…I have not found a new IT instructor yet. But we had agreed on you leaving as soon as you have found something new."

"Thank you for your understanding" Auggie was nervous and fumbled a bit with his cane. He liked Mrs. Garcia and he had just started to like his job. "I am a bit sorry, too because I liked my job here but you will surely understand that I prefer working as an admin or as the head of IT department"

Then, Auggie rose from his chair, unfolded his cane again and left. The last lessons at the centre would begin soon and he did not want to be late.

"Could I have your attention please!" Auggie said when all his students had taken their seats.

"I would like to inform you that this will be your last lesson and your last day with me. I am going to leave, because I found a new job"

As soon as he had finished his short speech Auggie heard the students murmur in the classroom. One of them finally said.

"It is really a pity that you have to leave. You are an excellent teacher and we will really miss you" The murmur of the other students confirmed the words of the young man.

This was one of the moments when Auggie was glad that his students were as blind as he was because he did not have to hide his emotions and the tears that now burned in his eyes. Instead he said.

"Thank you for your kind words, but I guess we´d better get down to business now. Please open your book on page 55 and read the instructions. If you have any questions let me know and I will be there to answer them"

Shortly after, Auggie heard the students open their books and listened to the turning of the pages while he walked through the room and finally stopped in front of a window. He stared out of the window onto a well kept garden and blooming flowers and trees that he could not see. The beauty of all that had been lost on him for a long time already but he had managed to deal with it.

Two hours later lunch break came closer and Auggie walked into the lounge where some of the other teachers were already talking. A few seconds after, the door opened again an Garret walked in.

"Hey Auggie, I have just heard you´re gonna leave us"

"Yeah, I found something new. I am going to start on Monday. I liked working here but I am happy to be back to my old job as an IT admin"

"Okay then let my invite you for a farewell beer on our break. What do you think?"

"Your offer is really tempting, I can hardly say no" Auggie grinned and took Garret´s arm preparing to leave.

Twenty minutes later the two men sat in a café at the end of the road. Auggie had ordered a cheese and ham sandwich and a beer and Garret a beer and a hamburger.

"I really liked you as a colleague. I am kind of sad that you are leaving now" Garret said after the first bite of his hamburger and the first sip of his beer.

"Yeah, I liked my job, too and I liked working with you" Auggie replied and he had a bit of a bad conscience that he could not be honest with Garret because he really liked him. Even after so many years as a spy there were times when it was hard to play a role and to deceive others. But he could not help it. He had a job to do and he had been successful so far.

"Where do you start working now?" Garret asked and Auggie almost flinched upon that question. His mind started spinning and he quickly invented something, hoping to sound believable.

"I am going to be in charge of the IT department at a huge production plant for textiles. I guess you won´t have heard the name, they have just set up their factory here a few weeks ago." When Auggie had finished his sentence he hoped that Garret would not ask further questions and he was relieved when Garret only said

"Okay, then good luck with your new job"

"Thanks" Auggie smiled

Two and a half hours later Auggie was back home. Annie was already waiting for him and Jeremy was still playing with his friends from school, so there was enough time for the shopping tour she had planned on.

"Hey Darling, I am back!" Auggie called when he opened the door and made his way to the kitchen folding up his cane while he walked.

"I am happy you made it home early enough for our shopping tour" Annie grinned, well knowing that Auggie was anything else but keen on that trip to the shopping mall.

"Do we really have to go?" Auggie said with an unnerved expression on his face.

"Yeah, we definitely have to go. The two jeans in your closet look anything else but decent, knowing that the state of your clothes is sometimes lost on you, ….I mean considering the circumstances…. I have to insist on our shopping tour."

"Okay then, let´s go" Auggie sighed" And he was not angry for Annie being so direct. She was right, given his complete lack of sight, he was not always able to tell whether his clothes still looked decent and okay, so he had to believe her.

Twenty minutes later Auggie and Annie got out of the car. Annie had left the car on the parking lot next to the shopping mall and offered Auggie now her lead. As usual, he grabbed her elbow and they made their way to the first clothes store on the ground floor. A young shop assistant walked towards them as they entered the shop.

"How can I help you?" He asked, turning to Annie and ignoring Auggie who leaned on his cane.

"Well I am actually looking for a pair of new jeans" Auggie said and now the shop assistant lifted his brows in surprise and turned towards Auggie.

Auggie felt that the young man acted awkwardly. This was not new for him. Many people just did not know how to act around a blind person.

"Well then let me have your size and I will get you a selection of jeans to try" The shop assistant said and disappeared after Auggie had given him the size.

Whilst the shop assistant walked around the shop grabbing a pair of jeans here and there from the shelves, Annie led Auggie to the changing cubicle. Auggie folded his cane, felt for the chair sat down and took off his trousers. A few seconds later the shop assistant appeared with five pairs of jeans.

The first pair of dark blue jeans was too long, the second a bit too short but the third pair did fit perfectly. Auggie felt for the curtain, opened it and called "Annie, what do you think?"

"Well, this jeans was definitely made for you. It fits, it suits you and the colour is just right."

"Okay I am going to take these" Auggie replied

"What about the other two?" Annie asked

"Do I really have to try these, too?"

"Oh come on Auggie, don´t be a jerk. We wanted to buy two jeans for you. It cannot be such a strain for you to try two further pairs of jeans"

"Okay, I see, discussing with you does not make sense" and with these words Auggie disappeared again in the changing cubicle.

He tried the other two jeans and just like before the first pair of jeans was too long but the second would fit.

Annie opened the curtain a bit, peeked into the cubicle and nodded "Yeah these are good" and then Auggie handed over the second pair of jeans to her before he got dressed again.

"We are going to take these" Annie said and the shop assistant approached again taking the jeans out of Annie´s hand and walked over to the checkout.

Auggie opened the curtain of the changing cubicle and Annie offered him her arm again and led him to the checkout where Auggie opened his wallet and paid. Again, he felt that the shop assistant felt awkward around him. When he had put the change into his wallet the shop assistant suddenly asked.

"Do you mind me asking….I mean…are you completely blind?"

"Yes I am"

"Oh, I see…I...you must know that I have never met a blind person and I did not know how to talk to you. I am sorry If I came over a bit unfriendly"

"I assumed that you have not been around blind people before, but don´t worry, you are not the first one feeling awkward when meeting somebody who cannot see" Auggie replied with a friendly smile.

"Thank you Sir" the shop assistant said and handed Auggie the bag with the jeans.

"I am glad I have finally gotten over with this" Auggie sighed when he left the shop and Annie led him to the car.

"Well, we finally got what we wanted, so just relax now" Annie said and nudged Auggie with her elbow before she opened the door and got into the driver seat. Auggie felt for the door handle, opened the door, took a seat, folded his cane and put it onto his lap.

On their way back home Annie and Auggie stopped to pick up Jeremy who had been playing with Tom. Tom´s Mum opened the door after Annie had rung the door bell. Auggie had stayed in their car. He was exhausted and needed a break. He sat on the front passenger seat and had closed his eyes. Sometimes all the impressions, the olfactory, audible and tactile stimulus were too much for him and he needed to calm down. This was one of these days.

"Mummy, we had a great day. Tom has a new race car track and we have been playing with it all afternoon. I ´d love to have something like that, too" Jeremy said before he took Annie´s hand and left.

The following night was almost sleepless for Auggie. The impressions of his job at the centre had made come back a lot of memories, memories of a time , when he had just lost his vision. He tossed and turned in bed and around 4:00 a.m. Annie woke him, when she heard him groan and finally scream.

"Hey wake up, what is going on with you?" Annie cautiously touched Auggie´s shoulder, shaking him cautiously.

Auggie slowly realized where he was and that he had just had a bad nightmare. He turned a bit towards Annie´s side of the bed, his forehead covered with sweat.

"Why did you wake me?"

"Well, I thought you were having nightmares. You screamed and groaned. I just wanted to get you out of that mess"

"Well, I cannot remember all of it but I guess I was in Iraq again, the explosion..., the accident..., my buddies from the military unit dying...I just don´t know why I cannot get rid of that after all these years"

Auggie sounded desperate. Even more so, because hed did not like to admit any kind of vulnerability. Annie was one of the few persons in his life he would open up to, at least at times. Auggie slowly got out of bed, went over to the adjacent bathroom and splashed some cool water onto his sweaty face. Then he made his way back to the bed wrapped his arms around Annie and fell asleep again.

The sound of the alarm clock woke him a few hours later. "It is 6:30 a.m., it is 6:30 a.m. the female voice announced and Auggie felt for the button to stop the noise. Then he remembered what had happened before. He was not proud of the fact that he still was vulnerable, that he still suffered at least subconsciously.

Auggie rose from the bed and got under the shower, the cold water refreshed him and when he had finally shaved, he carefully walked over to the closet. He felt for the Braille tags on his shirts and opted for a white shirt, a dark-grey pair of jeans and a black leather belt.

Annie was already out, taking Jeremy to school. He was grateful to have some time for himself. He still had not gotten over the nightmare he had had a few hours before, and he did not want to talk it over again. Auggie walked over to the coffeemaker, got a mug from the shelf above the sink and slowly poured himself a cup whilst letting slide his finger across the rim. In an hour he had to be in Langley and he would plan the next steps of the "Garret Mission" with Barber and the rest of the crew.


	15. Chapter 15

Annie and Auggie family and home part 15

Auggie arrived in his office at 8:30. Barber had moved over to his own desk again and was just listening to some recording. Auggie found the glass door to his office with the tip of his cane, opened it and walked across the room, over to his desk, folding the cane on his way. Then he trailed his left hand along the edge of the desk, found the first drawer and swapped the white cane for the laser cane.

Right after, he made his way over to Barber and Hollman in the adjacent office.

"Hey guys, what are you working on right now?"

"Hey, man…." Barber looked up from the screen and over to Auggie who stood right next to him.

"Good to have you back Auggie, I have missed the "big Tech Ops boss" he smirked and Auggie could hear that grin in Eric´s voice.

"Yeah, it is good to be back" Auggie replied before he continued "What have you found out about Garret and Company?"

"Well, I have just listened to the latest calls he made and it looks like he is up for a meeting with an Arabic guy in two days. They are about to meet in a café on Wednesday afternoon. If we could get more details that would be just awesome."

"What about following them and listen to their conversation? " Auggie suggested

"Well that would have to be an inconspicuous person" Barber said

" I guess I have an idea" Auggie said

"Why don´t we just send Annie to that café. Garret does not know her. Maybe she is able to get a bug or a microphone on him or she might even listen to his conversation from a neighbouring table."

"This might be an idea" Barber said We just need a bug tiny enough to hide it, but I guess I have still some stuff that might suit this purpose."

"Good… and I am going to read Annie and Joan in" Auggie said and walked out of Barber´s office.

Four minutes later, Auggie knocked on Joan´s office door. He entered and walked straight to the desk where Joan was going through a heap of documents. She looked up and rose from her seat.

"I am glad you are back Auggie" She smiled and put her right hand on Auggie´s shoulder. She knew how important physical contact for Auggie was since she could not look into his eyes.

"I have come to give you an update on my mission. Barber and I have got a plan. I would love Annie to be a part of this plot" Auggie said, feeling for the back of the chair before he sat down.

"Have you already read in Annie?" Joan asked, taking also a seat again behind her desk .

"No, I have not had time yet. I immediately went over to you after my conversation with Eric" Auggie answered trying to meet Joan´s gaze across the desk. "But I will inform her as soon as I am back in my office." And with these words Auggie got up from his seat and walked to the door.

Shortly after, he was back at his desk. He grabbed his headphones and booted his desktop computer. There were already a couple of mails he needed to answer, before he got to the other tasks. He was immersed into listening to the first email read to him, that he almost was not aware of somebody coming into the room. Annie had slowly come closer and put her hand on Auggie´s shoulder.

"Jesus…" Auggie turned round with his chair….he had not noticed her presence and was now slightly shocked.

"How can you sneak up so secretly on your poor blind husband" He quipped, rising from his chair and pulling Annie into an embrace before he finally kissed her.

"Well I had guessed that you would have noticed me a bit earlier given your super-senses" Annie replied, kissing him back passionately.

"I have to talk to you. Eric and I have made a plan and we need your help. We want you to be part of the mission. Wednesday afternoon at 5:00 Garret is going to meet his contact at the "Black Cock" Café. I want you to spy on him and to listen to his conversation. It would be good if you could be there a bit earlier to make sure that you get a table. Eric will give you a tiny microphone that makes it possible to overhear conversations from a distance."

"Wow, nice idea to be on a mission with you again so to speak" Annie said "I have not worked with you in a while. I guess that will be fun"

"Speaking of fun; I am still thinking about the school thing. Next Wednesday I am supposed to go to school with Jeremy. I will have to convince the kids that working in an office is fun"

"I am sure the kids will enjoy your story. You could bring your laptop and show how the Braille display works. Maybe they will find that interesting.

"Yeah, I have already thought about that and I think it is a good idea"

"I need to go through a translation for Joan, some Russian documents she has just received" Annie said before she left the office.

Auggie grabbed his headphones again and continued listening to the emails he had received.

The day passed quickly and at 5:00 pm Annie walked again into Auggie´s office.

"Are you done for today?" She asked.

Auggie stopped sliding his fingertips across the page he had been reading, opened his watch, checked the time and said

"Wow, I wasn´t aware that it was so late already. But yeah, I am almost done. The page I have been reading can wait until tomorrow, so let´s go home honey"

Annie offered Auggie her arm and led him out of the office to the parking lot. At home Jeremy was playing Memory with his babysitter when Annie and Auggie arrived.

"Daddy, Mum...I have already 5 matching pairs and she has nothing!"

Jeremy said proudly pointing over to Sarah the babysitter.

"Well, he is hard to beat" The girl said before she grabbed her handbag and left.

"I wish I could play with you Memory too, Dad." Jeremy said, walking over to Auggie and putting his little arms around Auggie´s waist.

"Well, I cannot play Memory with you because I can´t see, but we can play other games" Auggie replied, lifting his son up to his eye level and hugging him tightly. "Besides, I got a new game for you that might be interesting as well"

"What kind of game?"

"Well that is still a secret but if you get me that little brown, wooden box from my desk I will tell you"

"That sounds cool" and with these words the little boy ran up the stars into his father´s writing cabinet and grabbed the box from the desk.

"Do you mean this one?" Jeremy asked, placing the box into Auggie´s hands.

Auggie assessed the box by sliding his fingers across the lid and the label and nodded

"Yeah, that would be the one. Let´s sit down at the dining table and I ´ll show you what´s in it"

Jeremy and Auggie took a seat at the table and Auggie opened the lid of the box and got out a number of flashcards. Each of the cards contained a tactile Braille letter and the matching letter in black print.

"Wow, are these Braille memory cards?" Jeremy asked

"Not exactly, those are flashcards. With these cards I learned to read Braille a while ago, I mean after my accident. I have not used the cards for quite a while but I thought you´d have fun learning Braille with me, using these cards"

"That is really cool" Jeremy was enthusiastic. "Can we start right now?"

And then, Auggie started sliding his fingertips across the cards, explaining to his son all of the tactile Braille letters. Jeremy was already able to distinguish some of the cards all on his own by reading out loud the printed black letters, he had already learned at school.

"Maybe you can take these cards to school with you Daddy when you come and visit next week." Jeremy said

"Yeah, that is a good idea" Auggie smiled

Two days later Annie sat at the café. She had taken a seat at one of the tables and a hidden camera and a tiny microphone with a wide range would help her to get eyes and ears on her target person. Auggie and Hollman were sitting in a delivery van on the other side of the road prepared to listen to the conversation.

Annie sipped on her first cup of cappuccino when Garret and his Arabic friend arrived. First Garret took a seat at the table and ordered an ice-tea and two minutes later his friend appeared and started talking to him.

Annie pretended to be playing with her mobile phone whilst enjoying her cappuccino and Auggie listened from the distance

"Have you got all the details?" The Arabic guy asked

"Yes, the boxes with the missiles and guns shall be here in three days. Ben Al Makri will your contact. He is going to deposit the boxes in the old and empty warehouse on Starling-Road 30. You just need to pick them up there. The money transfer however should take place tomorrow. Payment in advance or no delivery. " Garret explained

"I shall arrange for the immediate money transfer" The Arabic guy said in English with a strong accent

"Bingo" Auggie said listening to the conversation "We got them, we just need to nail them in three days"

When Annie had finished her cup of cappuccino the two men had also concluded their deal and got up. Annie waited until they had left before she went over to the delivery van and knocked.

"We got all that we need" Auggie said "Now we can go over to the last phase of our mission"

Two minutes later Hollman started the motor and they were on their way back to Langley.

"Great job" Joan said, when the three appeared in her office. "We have almost achieved what we wanted. I am sure we will be able to catch the guys."

Garret sat in his kitchen. He had just finished his pizza and opened a bottle of beer when the doorbell rang. He went to open the door and found two men in black suits standing on the threshold. One of them had short black hair, opened his wallet, showed a badge and said

"Rossabi, FBI I have to ask you to come with us"

Garret was shocked. He went pale from one minute to the other and almost lost his balance. He had always been scared that his connection with the Arabic weapons dealers would one day come to the surface but he had not believed that it might happen so soon.

"May I at least get my jacket?" He asked and the two men followed him trying to make sure that Garret did not attempt to escape.

Then, Garret followed Rossabi and his colleage to a blue van that took him to the FBI headquarter.

Three days later, the operation was reaching its peak. Auggie, Barber and Hollman sat again in a grey van not far from the building where the weapons were supposed to be hidden. An armed crew of CIA agents was hiding in the area around the building, waiting for the weapons deal to take place. CIA staff had bugged the building so that they would know what was going on every single minute.

"A car is coming closer, Auggie said, listening to the sounds coming through his headphones" Hollman and Barber peeked through the windows of the van and confirmed

"Yes, a black Mercdes and a blue Toyota have just stopped in front of the building"

The two men walked towards the building and opened the door.

"Here they are" the first man said in Arabic and Auggie translated to Hollman and Barber who were listening as well

"You got the desired quantity. Your payment has been accepted. If you have problems to get the boxes out of the country, contact Garret Davison. He knows a reliable forwarder that would help you"

"Thank you" The second man said. Shaking hands with his partner.

By the time the two men walked over to the door with the first box in their arms, the door opened and an armed 6-people CIA team yelled

"Hands Up, don´t move!"

And before the two men could act or respond they were handcuffed and led to a dark-blue van outside

Through his headphones Auggie could now hear a bunch of Arabic curses and swear words he would not literally translate to his colleagues.

Back in Langley Auggie learned that Garret had been arrested by the FBI. He felt pity for the man because he really had come to like him. Therfore he decided to visit him in jail and tell him the truth.


	16. Chapter 16

Auggie and Annie family and home part 16

Auggie and Jeremy stepped out of the bus and walked along the sidewalk. Jeremy carried his schoolbag and Auggie had a backpack filled with all kinds of stuff he wanted to show to the kids of Jeremy´s class.

"I am excited" Jeremy said. He had taken Auggie´s hand. He had already become familiar with how to guide his father and was really proud of that.

"Why are you so excited?" Auggie asked him

"Well, you are the first Dad coming to school. The other kids will come with their fathers the following days."

"There is nothing to be nervous about. You and me will be fine and I guess I brought a couple of interesting things for you and your friends" They continued to walk in silence for a while until Jeremy said

"Daddy we are almost there. Only a few steps and then we have to turn right"

"You are already a good guide my son" Auggie smiled and squeezed Jeremy´s hand a bit.

Seconds later, Jeremy led Auggie through the gate across the school yard towards the entrance. Auggie was proud of his son. Jeremy really showed responsibility when he and Auggie went to places Auggie had never been before but also when they both visited familiar places. Jeremy was "his eyes" and Auggie trusted him, even if his son was still very young.

Most kids were already in the classroom when Auggie and Jeremy arrived. Jeremy led Auggie to the teacher desk where Auggie felt for the desk surface and started to unpack his equipment. A few seconds later, Mrs. Williams appeared in the door frame.

"Welcome Mr. Anderson" she smiled and Auggie extended his hand to greet her. He always did that, to avoid awkward situations. Right after he had lost his sight, it often happened that people extended their hands to greet him and he did not realize it because he could not see. This was often confusing for sighted people. So Auggie would always be the first one to offer a handshake.

Now Mrs. Williams took his hand and said

"I am glad you could make it Mr. Anderson. The kids and I are already excited about what you are going to show us today"

Ten minutes later, the rest of the kids had arrived as well and everyone had taken their seat.

"I am happy to tell you that Mr. Anderson, Jeremy´s father is here with us today. He will tell us a bit about his job."

And then she turned towards Auggie and said

"Mr. Anderson it is your turn now, we are all ears"

"Good morning kids"

Auggie greeted the kids in the classroom.

"This is not my first time here. Maybe you all remember my first visit here, when I told you that I am blind and when I showed you how a blind person gets around. I work in an office and today I want to show you how a blind person can work in an office. I have brought you my computer and my Braille display and I will show you how it works."

Auggie now booted his laptop attached his Braille display. He asked the kids to come to the teacher´s desk so that he could show them what he did.

Soon the voice of the screen reader filled the room "system is booting" the computer voice announced.

Some of the kids giggled a bit because the computer voice sounded strange to them.

"The computer voice reads everything to me that is on the screen and with the arrow keys I can navigate the websites and programmes" Auggie explained.

"And what is this funny thing below the keyboard with the tiny holes?

One of the girls asked curiously.

"Well, this is my Braille display. Maybe you all remember that I showed you how I can read with my hands. This special keyboard makes it possible to read the text that is displayed on the screen with my fingertips. I do that when I don´t want to use the screen reader.

And then he showed the kids how the little Braille dots formed on his keyboard and slid his hand across the Braille display.

"We are on the Disney page right now" He said and the kids were fascinated because he was right. They could see all the famous Disney characters on that page.

"And you really cannot see the screen?" another kid asked

"No, I cannot see anything. It is always night around me so to speak. I need to rely on the screen reader to tell me where I am or I slide my fingers across the Braille display"

The kids watched Auggie read the Braille display and were fascinated.

"Who wants to try and feel the dots on the Braille display?" Auggie asked

"I would like to try" a little blond girl said

"Okay, come over to me" Auggie said and got up from his chair

The little girl walked over to Auggie and he felt for her hand when he noticed that she was standing right next to him. With the other hand he felt for the keyboard and put her little hand on the line that displayed the Braille characters.

He navigated the page with the arrow keys and Sandra, the little girl said

"That is funny, a bit ticklish under my fingers"

"Yeah, at first it is" Auggie smiled

"But how can you read so quickly with your hands" Sandra asked

"That is all a question of practice and experience. It took me a while but now it is an easy thing for me."

"Can you also print sheets with those dots" Samantha, a 7-year-old asked

"Yeah, I have a Braille printer at work. Those are pretty expensive that is why I haven´t got one at home. But I have a reading device that scans pages and reads them to me"

Sandra now walked over to the other kids again and Auggie shut down his computer, then he got the box with the Braille flash cards out of his backpack and opened it. He asked the kids to take their seats again and then felt his way to the first row. He took the first flash card out of the box, slid his fingers across it and handed it over to the first kid.

"This is the letter B in Braille" he explained and asked the kid to pass the flash card around. One kid after the other looked at the card, and slid the finger across the Braille letter. Then Auggie took the next card and said "This is the letter G" and like before, the flash card was passed around so that each child could have a look at it. He did that two or three times more and the kids looked at each of the cards.

"Could you write us a word in Braille?" Tom asked

"Yeah of course, which word would you like me to write for you?" Auggie asked

"Dog" Tom said

"How do you spell DOG?" Auggie asked again

"D-O-G" Tom replied

"Okay, I am gonna write that word for you" And then Auggie grabbed his stylus and his Braille slate, felt for the first tiny box, placed a few dots with his stylus in it and repeated that for the next two boxes. Then he opened the slate, took the paper out, turned it, slid his fingers across the paper and passed it to the kids.

One child after the other looked at the short word Auggie had written down.

"It must be difficult to be blind" One kid said

Auggie swallowed and replied "Yeah, sometimes it is but you get used to it after a while and I have been living without my sight for many years now. I have gotten used to it"

Seconds later, the bell rang and it was time for break. The kids grabbed the sandwiches they had brought from home and went out to play. Auggie started to put everything he had brought back into his backpack, took his cane and felt his way out. Walking down the stairs of the building, he heard a kid run towards him. It was Jeremy

"Are you going home now Daddy?"

"Yes, my lesson with you is over. Mum is going to pick you up at noon"

"It was so nice to have you here" Jeremy said and put his arms around Auggie´s waist before he looked up to him and said "Bye"

Auggie slowly walked back to the bus stop counting his steps carefully. He finally found the bus stoop sign with his cane and waited. The bus should arrive any minute. He had enjoyed the time with the kids at school. Kids had such a natural way to ask and they were mostly not prejudiced. But sometimes it was also a bit hard for him. Because the questions were direct and when one of the kids had said "It must be hard to be blind" He could not lie about it.

This time Auggie did not take the bus. He took out his cell phone and called a cab that would take him to Petersburg Prison. He had a special appointment. About 45 minutes later he reached the Petersburg Correctional Centre. The cab driver led him into the building where an officer was already waiting for Auggie. For security reasons Auggie had to leave his personal things and also his cane before he entered the visitor´s room.

Garret sat at the table in the visitor´s room. He had no clue who wanted to visit him. But when the door opened and he saw an officer leading Auggie towards him his eyes widened in surprise.

"Thank you officer" Auggie said, feeling for the chair in front of him and took a seat.

"I am at a loss for words" Garret said "How do you know that I am here?"

"Well, I am still in touch with some people from the centre and they told me what happened to you."

That was of course not the entire truth. First, Auggie had considered the possibility to tell Garret the whole story, but then he had second thoughts and decided it would be easier to tell Garret that he had heard from other people about his imprisonment. Telling him that he was CIA was not an easy thing and he did not want to disappoint Garret. He just wanted to make sure he was alright.

"You have been so kind to me that I wanted to know what happened to you" Auggie added.

"That is a long and complicated story" Garret said

"I am not very proud of all that but I used to gamble. When I finally realized that I needed help I had already lost such a lot of money that I did not know how to get out of that situation. I could not go to a bank so I found a shylock to lend me some money. But that only got me deeper into all that shit. When I could not pay the money back to the shylock either he threatened me. He said he would harm my family or even kill my wife, my parents or my kids if I did not do what he wanted me to do."

"He forced me to play the contact person for him and his business partners. When I finally realized what kind of business that was, I was deeply shocked, but there was no way back if I did not want to risk the health and the life of my family"

Auggie listened to Garret´s explanation his head slightly tilted to the side, his hands folded on the table in front of him.

Garrets voice trembled and his hands were shaking. Auggie felt a little pity for him. He could hear it in Garret´s voice how much he suffered. He had not the courage to tell him that he had been spying on him. Auggie could even imagine keeping in touch with him, being friends with him.

"I am so grateful you came" Garret said "Nobody else from the centre is interested in me anymore. I will lose my job. I won´t be able to get back to my job as an O and M instructor. My wife has to find a job now to provide for herself and the kids as long as I am here in prison.

Maybe I can help Auggie thought by himself. He had lots of friends, maybe he could find somebody to offer him a job when he was released from prison in about 2 years.

Two minutes later the door opened again. The visiting hours were over and an officer offered Auggie his arm and led him out.

An hour later Auggie was back home and he had a lot to think about.


	17. Chapter 17

Auggie and Annie family and home part 17

Two years later

Summer vacation was approaching and Jeremy was looking forward to his trip to Glencoe Illinois. He loved his grandparents but they rarely visited Auggie and his family. After the summer break Jeremy would be in 3rd grade.

"Time is passing by so quickly" Annie sighed when preparing Jeremy´s sandwiches for school. She took the red Tupperware lunch box and put two cheese sandwiches and an apple into it. Then she added a little bottle of orange juice and handed everything over to her son.

"Thanks Mum" Jeremy said, before he shouldered his school bag and left. He was now able to walk to school on his own. On his way to school, he always met with Tom his best friend and the two boys continued their way to school together.

Auggie was still under the shower. He would start working a bit later today. He had an appointment with a friend who owned a restaurant. Steven needed a waiter and Auggie had suggested to give Garret a chance who would be released from prison in two days. Auggie and Garret had kept in touch and of course Auggie knew how urgently his friend needed a job. Garret did not know about Auggie´s plan. Auggie wanted to talk to Steven first to spare his friend a disappointment in case Steven rejected Garret as a possible employee.

Auggie turned off the faucet, felt for the fluffy bath towel and started to dry himself. Then he shaved, brushed his teeth and walked over to the closet to get some clothes. Since he had been living with Annie his selection of clothes had changed a bit. He no longer wore exclusively grey, blue or black. Annie had encouraged him to buy some shirts and sweaters in different colours. She liked it when he wore red or mint.

Auggie opted for a red shirt with short sleeves, dark-blue jeans and a brown leather belt. He carefully dressed himself, grabbed his shoes and went down to the kitchen where Annie was just pouring some coffee for Auggie and herself.

"Do you think Steven will take him?" She asked when Auggie felt for the chair and sat down at the table. He found the coffee cup with the back of his hand and took a sip.

"We will see. I mean….Steven knows that I would not run any risk, recommending him somebody as an employee who is not reliable. Garret made mistake, he deserves a second chance."

"I hope everything will turn out just fine" Annie said before she took the first piece of toast and added some butter and jam.

An hour and a half later Auggie stepped off the bus. He carefully oriented himself before he turned to the right and started counting his steps, sweeping his cane in an arc before him. After five minutes he stopped, turned left into a narrow cobblestone road and continued his way along a narrow alley until he reached the restaurant. He swept his cane, found the door and entered.

"Hey Auggie my friend" Steven greeted him when he walked across the threshold.

"Good to see you, so to speak" Auggie smirked and Steven offered him his arm, leading him to a table next to one of the windows.

Auggie felt for the back of the chair, folded his cane and took a seat, putting the cane on the table in front of him.

"I would love to talk to you for a special reason" Auggie started the conversation " A friend of mine is looking for a job and you said you needed a waiter for your restaurant"

"Yes, I am in dire need of an additional waiter. Summer business is good and we have a lot of guests here every day. Does this friend of yours have experience in the restaurant business?"

"Well, not exactly. He had a different job and he lost it when he was sentenced to two years in Petersburg"

Steven now frowned "He was in prison?" He asked a bit incredulous of what he had just heard. An ex-prisoner was not exactly what he was looking for but he was prepared to listen to Auggie. Steven knew, Auggie would not recommend a person that could not be trusted.

"Garret is a good guy. He gambled and got himself money from a shylock to pay his debts. The guy blackmailed him to help him with some dirty business, threatening him to kill his children and his family." Auggie explained

"Wow that is a quite a story" Steven said. Now he had a different picture of the guy Auggie was suggesting to him as an employee. "And what kind of job did he have before that?"

"Well, he was an O & M trainer at the Centre for the Blind, where I did my training" Auggie replied. "He cannot go back to his old job and he urgently needs to find a new job and he needs some new perspective after being released"

"O & M trainer, that is something completely different" Steven remarked before he continued "But okay, I will give him a chance to prove that he is worth it to be trusted. He can start next Monday. Tell him to be here at 10:00 am."

"Thanks my friend, I owe you one" Auggie smiled and he and Steven shook hands before he stood and made his way to the door. Outside, he took his phone, dialed a number and called a taxi. Taking the bus would require too much time. He had two more days to work until the weekend and on Monday he, Annie and Jeremy would drive to Illinois and visit his parents. He wanted to get as many things off his desk as possible before his vacation. Auggie did not go home so often. Even after being blind for so many years he still felt awkward there. Everything reminded him of the time before the accident and therefore he rarely visited his family in Glencoe.

DC, however, was different. He had started a new life there after Iraq and most people knew him only blind. In Glencoe, old friends, neighbours, and former high school classmates would talk to him and remind him of the "good old times" when he could still see. Auggie was reluctant to admit that, but he did not go to Glencoe on a regular basis because these memories hurt him and they hurt his parents, too. But for his son seeing his grandparents was important and so he tried to overcome his awkward feelings and went on vacation to Glencoe with Annie and Jeremy.

Auggie felt for the lid of his watch, opened it and felt for the time. The cab should be there any minute. Shortly after, he heard the sound of an approaching car and heard the car stop. The taxi driver looked over to him, opened the window and called "Taxi for Anderson?"

"Yeah, that would be me" Auggie replied and walked towards the sound of the car engine. His cane tip found the back of the car and Auggie trailed his hand along the side of the cab feeling for the door. Finding the handle, he opened and sat on the back seat.

Half an hour later he was in Langley. He walked into his office, folded his cane, stowed it in the first desk drawer and booted his computer. He listened to the sound of the booting device, took a seat on his chair and slung his headphones around his neck. Seconds later a voice called

"Good morning to you Auggie"

It was Joan Campbell. She had entered through the glass door and walked now towards Auggie´s desk.

"Hey Joan" Auggie turned a bit into Joan´s direction.

"Are you already looking forward to your Glencoe trip?" She asked, placing one hand on Auggie´s shoulder.

"Well, it is nice to see my family again but a visit brings back old memories and things, I would love to forget" Auggie confessed. Joan knew him well enough to notice when he was hiding something. She had been there for him after his accident and back then he had already told her about his reservation to go back to the place of his childhood.

"I can understand you" Joan said and added "But I also think it is important to work on these things. You cannot run away and hide for ever"

"I know" Auggie nodded and slid his hand across the Braille display, reading the screen content.

"I wish you a wonderful time" Joan finally said and left.

Auggie listened to Joan´s retreating steps and started to concentrate again on his job. He did not want to leave anything undone, before he went on vacation.

At noon, Annie walked into his office.

"Are you hungry?" She smiled, hugging him from behind and placing a soft kiss on his left cheek.

"Yeah, I could use something to eat. Maybe a hamburger and definitely some coffee to keep me awake. Last night was pretty sleepless"

"I know what is going on, you are worried about going back to Glencoe, right? But you don´t need to be concerned. It is just friends and family there waiting for you. Everyone knows you"

"That exactly is the problem. They all know me, I mean they KNEW me when I was still sighted and I cannot deal with the way they behave around me since I have gone blind"

"I will be with you, no need to worry" Annie said again before Auggie rose from his desk. As usual she offered him her elbow and led the way to the cafeteria.

"Was your attempt to find a new job for Garret successful?" Annie asked leading Auggie towards a table and placing his hand on the back of a chair.

Auggie took a seat and Annie walked towards the service counter to get their snacks.

Auggie was immersed into his own thoughts when Annie returned with a tray.

"Coffee at ten o´clock, hamburger at six" she said placing the cup and the plate in front of Auggie. He slowly oriented himself, feeling for the napkin, the plate and the coffee cup and started eating.

Annie looked over to her husband and realized that he was still miles away, immersed into his own world. Therefore she quietly started eating as well. He did not want to talk that was obvious.


	18. Chapter 18

Auggie and Annie family and home part 18

Auggie was quiet. Annie had taken a seat behind the steering wheel and they had started their trip to Glencoe at 6 in the morning. Jeremy sat in the back of the car playing with his dinosaurs and listening to stories on his little ipod.

"I could use a break" Auggie suddenly said. Annie turned slightly her head looking over to her husband who had not been talking for the last 3 hours since they had started from home.

"Yeah, I could use a coffee, too" Annie replied. I am going to take the next exit and we will look for a diner"

Twenty minutes later Annie steered the car towards the exit and found a spot for their car on the parking lot of a highway diner. Auggie got out of the car, unfolded his cane and waited for Annie who had just walked around the car to help Jeremy get out of his seat. When Jeremy had gotten out of the car as well, Annie offered Auggie her arm, touching his hand slightly with hers.

The three now walked towards the diner. Given the beautiful summer weather there were also a number of chairs and tables outside shaded by huge green umbrellas. Annie led Auggie towards a table and put his hand on the back of a chair. Auggie folded his cane, put it on the table in front of him and sat down. When he had put the cane on the table, his hands found the menu that was laid out on very table and for the first time that day he smiled and said "Well that is nothing for me"

Annie was happy that her husband finally started talking a bit and replied "I am gonna read it to you"

"I could do that as well" Jeremy said, looking over to Auggie and Annie on the other side of the table.

"Okay, champion, then tell me what´s on offer here"

Now Jeremy took the menu into his hands, studied it a bit and read

"Drinks: coffee, cappuccino, green tea, hot chocolate, orange juice, coke, mineral water, apple juice

Snacks: French fries, cheeseburger, hamburger, mixed salad, tomato soup, potato soup

Desserts: apple cake, ice cream (vanilla, chocolate, strawberry), cheesecake, fruit salad"

Auggie listened to Jeremy reading to him and finally said "I am gonna have a coffee and a cheeseburger"

Annie and Jeremy opted for a hamburger and a mixed salad, a coke and apple juice.

The young waitress took their orders and appeared with the snacks 10 minutes later.

As before Auggie quietly ate and just listened to the conversation between Annie and his son. He enjoyed to stretch his legs a bit and to feel the sun on his skin.

"Can we just walk around a bit before we get back into our car?" He asked when he had finished his cheeseburger.

"Yeah, of course" Annie smiled and touched his hand, reaching over to him. Then she looked over to the young waitress, waved and paid"

"I am gonna guide Dad this time" Jeremy said, stood and walked over to Auggie taking his hand.

Auggie put his right hand on his son´s shoulder and started walking next to him. After a few seconds he looked up to his father and asked "Daddy why have you been so quiet, aren´t you happy we are going to see Granny and Grandfather?"

As usual Jeremy was very intuitive and therefore Auggie thought his almost 9-year old son deserved an honest answer. "You know, I have not been to Glencoe for a while and I really do not like going because I have so many memories of that place, memories of the time when I could still see."

"Oh Daddy, I did not know that it hurts you so much to go to Glencoe" Jeremy said looking up to Auggie. They had walked around the diner. In the back part there was a playground for children and a little pond with ducks. Auggie could hear them quack and suddenly remembered the incident when Jeremy was three and had fallen into the water during a walk through the park. It had been a terrible situation for him because of his blindness he had not been able to help Jeremy.

"Aren´t the ducks cute?" Jeremy asked"I am sure they are" Auggie said.

"There is a duck mother with four tiny light-brown ducklings swimming right behind her" Annie explained.

"Yeah, little ducklings are really sweet" Auggie said, leaning on his cane listening to the sound of the splashing water when two ducks started an argument.

"I think we better get going, if we don´t want to arrive too late" Annie said after 10 minutes and Jeremy touched Auggie´s arm leading him towards the car. They had still around 7 hours to drive to reach their destination.

Back in the car, Jeremy fell asleep with his dinosaur in his hand whilst Annie and Auggie listened to the songs on the radio. They continued their ride for another two hours before they stopped again because nature was calling.

"Are we already there?" Jeremy asked with a sleepy voice from the back of the car. He had just woken up after his nap and was a bit confused.

"No, we are just having a break to use the bathroom" Auggie replied, feeling for his watch. He flipped the lid open and felt for the time. It was a quarter past 11 and they had still a 5-hours drive ahead until they would reach Glencoe.

Auggie, Annie and Jeremy headed to the bathroom of the highway diner and after a short while they continued their way. Annie had bought a bottle of mineral water and Auggie needed another coffee. Auggie and his caffeine addiction were a special topic. He cradled his coffee-to-go in his hands and sipped on it whilst Annie poured some mineral water for Jeremy and herself into a plastic cup.

Twenty minutes later they were on the highway again and for the first time since they had met, Annie wished that Auggie could drive, too. The distance between Glencoe and DC was a rather long one and she would have loved to take the passenger seat for a while. But of course, Auggie was blind and that would never change and she was the only one who could drive a car.

At 6:00 pm they finally reached their destination. When the car finally rolled across the gravel path in front of the Anderson house, Gladys Anderson spotted them and immediately called her husband.

"They are here" she exclaimed and wiped her hands on the apron she had wrapped around her waist whilst peeling potatoes and washing salad in the kitchen where it already smelled of fried chicken from the oven. Then she hurried to the front door, followed by her husband who had heard her call.

Auggie slowly got out of the passenger seat. He unfolded his cane and seconds later he felt the warm embrace of his mother.

"I am so glad you finally came" Gladys Anderson said, her eyes wet from the tears of joy. She had barely seen her son in Glencoe since his accident. He had only been to his parents once, right after he had returned from rehab and ever since he had avoided a visit to the place of his childhood.

"It is good to be back" Auggie said, hugging his mother tightly and he really meant what he said. At the beginning, he had been quite reluctant to the idea of returning to Glencoe but on their way from DC he had had a lot of time to think and he had come to the conclusion that he had made the right decision even if it meant that he had to fight the painful memories of the past as a sighted boy and man in Glencoe.

"It is good to have you back son" James Anderson said, pulling Auggie into a hug before he turned to Annie. Gladys Anderson held her grandson in a warm embrace.

"Oh my God , you have really grown quite a bit since our last visit" She said smiling.

I am almost 9 Jeremy said. He was proud that he would be in 3rd grade after the summer break.

"He has become a big boy already" James Anderson said looking over to his wife and Jeremy after he had welcomed Annie with a kiss on her cheek and an embrace.

"Let´s go inside!" Gladys said and took Auggie´s arm. He quietly withdrew it and felt his way up to his mother´s elbow. She still was not acquainted with the way to guide him. How could she? They did not meet often enough and he avoided talking about these things to his parents because he felt they were embarrassed by these things.

Annie, Jeremy and James followed Gladys and Auggie into the house. Auggie found the five stairs of the porch with his cane and finally said

"Mum I can walk alone" Gladys looked at him, a puzzled expression on her face. She had meant well, guiding her son to the house. But he felt uncomfortable. There were only a few people in his life who were allowed to lead him. And as soon he realized the other person was uncomfortable or did not know how to help him, he avoided to ask for help and opted for trying to walk alone.

Now Auggie folded his can and trailed his hand along the wall in the corridor. He found the coat hanger and put his leather jacket on it, before he put his neatly folded cane on the dresser below.

After Annie and Jeremy had also taken off their jackets, they followed Gladys and James into the living room where Auggie had already taken a seat in an armchair. He still found his way around, even after so many years. Nothing had changed, at least not regarding the layout and the position of the furniture in his parents´ house. But Auggie himself had changed. Since his last visit to Glencoe right after rehab, he had built himself a new life, he had got married and he had become a father. Auggie sat in his armchair deep lost in thought ,whilst Annie and Jeremy were talking with Gladys and James.

Annie realized what was going on with her husband and so she didn´t comment his behavior. She knew about his inner fight against himself and the memories that had come back.

After ten minutes Gladys got up because the kitchen timer rang. She walked into the kitchen and pulled the chicken out of the oven. The potatoes were done as well and the salad just needed a bit of dressing to be served. Annie followed her mother-in-law into the kitchen.

"Can I help you something?" She asked

"Yes, if you like you can get the dressing out of the fridge and add it to the salad before you set the salad onto the table"

"Sure" Annie walked to the fridge and got out the glass jar with Gladys´ home made dressing and poured it over the mixed salad. Then she took the glass bowl and set it in the middle of the dining table that was laid out already.

Now Auggie got up from his chair as well and felt his way to the kitchen. Even after so many years Gladys Anderson´s heart broke when she watched her son feeling his way around or using his cane. She had never really gotten over the accident and the impact it had had on her son´s life.

"The chicken smells delicious" Auggie commented walking towards Annie with his left hand slightly outstretched.

"How did you know that it is chicken?" Gladys asked surprised

"Mum, being blind doesn´t mean that I cannot smell" Auggie responded in a slightly unnerved tone. He felt like going back to the time after rehab when he had to explain that he still could do many things that did not require vision. He didn´t like the feeling, when somebody underestimated him and his capabilities. He quickly felt his way out of the kitchen and sat down at the dining table.

Now Jeremy walked over to his father and sat on the chair next to him.

"You look sad, Daddy" he said and took Auggie´s hand, trying to connect with his father.

"I am a bit tired" Auggie said and he knew it was a lie.

"Is it because you are blind now and you remember the time before?" Jeremy asked now and Auggie turned towards his son

"Yes" he said and was glad that now his mother appeared with the dinner and he could now distract himself with eating.


	19. Chapter 19

Annie and Auggie family and home part 19

Auggie and Annie had spent a good night in Auggie´s old room whilst Jeremy slept in the room that had belonged to Alan, Auggie´s oldest brother. Alan had become a lawyer and lived in New York. He and his wife Sandra had a little son of six months and a daughter of five. Alan and Sandra would visit and Auggie was looking forward to introducing Annie and Jeremy to that part of his family. Maybe Oliver his second brother would join them as well with his wife Jessica and his daughter 9-year old daughter Claudia. Gladys said that he was supposed to call.

After a refreshing shower, Auggie felt his way down the stairs into the kitchen where Gladys was preparing breakfast.

"The coffee smells good" he stated and Gladys turned towards her son and kissed him on his cheek.

"Good morning, I hope you had a good night"

"Yeah, I slept like a baby. I almost forgot how quiet it is here" Auggie replied, trailing his hand along the kitchen counter, finding his way to the fridge. He opened the door and felt for the milk bottle. Then he felt for the first cupboard, grabbed a cup, reached over to the coffeemaker and poured himself a cup whilst cautiously putting his index finger across the rim to make sure he did not spill anything. Then he added some milk and took the first sip.

"You are staring at me" Auggie said, feeling that his mother was watching him.

Now Gladys felt a bit embarrassed. "I still don´t know how you can do all that" she said

"What do you mean by _all that_?" Auggie asked in return

"Well, walking through the house, pouring coffee…I mean…I…I could not imagine to do all that if I were….I mean….if I …..if I …could not see"

"Mum, I have been living without my sight for a long time now and I have gotten used to doing most of the things on my own and….besides….you can use the word blind, it describes exactly what I am. I AM BLIND MUM!

Gladys Anderson swallowed, trying to get rid of the lump that had formed in her throat. She still felt sad when she watched Auggie moving around the house, especially when he visited Glencoe. In her mind she remembered the way he had been before the accident. A strong, independent, young man with a whole life ahead. But the bomb attack in Iraq had destroyed a lot of his dreams and had left his parents concerned and full of sorrow about his future.

"Sorry Auggie, I did not mean to offend you, son" Gladys walked over to Auggie and pulled him into a hug.

"It is just….I mean…I am kind of overwhelmed. You have not been here for a long time and I still have all these memories of the time before…before you lost your vision..." she paused for a second…..before adding "I mean before you went BLIND"

Now, Auggie tried to concentrate on his mother´s voice, trying to meet her gaze before he said

"Mum I take it you still can´t say it, right?

"Say what?"

"I meant you still can´t pronounce the word BLIND, when you talk about me. I can feel that"

Now, Gladys was glad that her son could not see her because the moisture in her eyes would have made Auggie feel uncomfortable. She knew how much he hated pity. But he was right, she could not get used to the idea to have a blind son. Even after so many years it hurt her to see her youngest son walking with a cane.

"Auggie, you are my son, I know that you cannot see but you are right, I still hate to call you BLIND even if it is true. For me you are still the man you were before but I admit that I often try to forget what happened to you."

"Mum, you have to move on and accept me the way I am. I have done that a long time ago and I started to feel better when I finally started accepting my blindness as a part of what I am now. It doesn´t make things any better when you deny the facts. And the fact is that I will never see again"

And then he felt for his mother´s face and with a tender movement of his hand he wiped away the tear that had rolled down Gladys´ cheeks while listening to her son.

"Let´s now have breakfast" he said taking in the smell of scrambled eggs, bacon, fresh toast and coffee.

Ten minutes later Auggie, Annie, Jeremy and his parents were sitting around the dining table enjoying their breakfast. Around noon, Alan would arrive with his family and Auggie was excited to see his brother after so many years. He had not even met his nephew and niece in all these years.

"Does Mr. Jackson still run that little corner shop?" Auggie asked after he had put down his fork and wiped his mouth with a napkin.

"Yeah, he does" James Anderson answered

"Then I think I´ll go for a walk. I wanna see whether he still has my favourite licorice drops" Auggie said, rising from his seat.

"Do you want to go alone?" Gladys asked

"Yeah, I have thought so. I guess you and Annie want to go shopping for our barbecue tonight, right? Shopping malls are not exactly the favourite place for a blind guy" Auggie grinned. Gladys however seemed to be uncomfortable. The blind jokes her son made from time to time did not really suit her personal taste.

"Can I go with you Daddy?" Jeremy asked "I would love to see what this shop is like and I could guide you"

"If you want to come with me you can" Auggie said, let me just go upstairs and grab my bag and cane before we go. And then Auggie made his way upstairs to his room.

He also grabbed his sunglasses that he had brought. It was a bright sunny day so many people would wear sunglasses. Auggie, however, opted for the glasses because he had not slept well the last three nights and Annie had told him he had dark circles under his eyes. Then he felt his way down the stairs where Jeremy was already waiting for him.

Jeremy slightly touched his father´s arm and Auggie put his hand on Jeremy´s shoulder when they walked down the gravel path and turned right onto the sidewalk.

"Do you still know the way Daddy?" Jeremy asked when they had walked a few metres.

"Yeah, I do. We have to walk until the end of this road and right at the corner there is this little shop where I used to buy my sweets, my chewing gum and my Disney comics when I was your age."

A few seconds later, Auggie heard a voice calling him. "Auggie! Auggie! Is that you, Auggie?"

Auggie and Jeremy stopped walking and then a young brunette lady walked towards them. She wore black jeans and a white blouse and her hair was put up in a bun. A huge pair of sunglasses gave her a touch of a Hollywood star.

"Hey Auggie, good to see you again", the young lady said giving Auggie a brilliant smile, wondering why he did not reciprocate.

"Susan Parker?" Auggie said with a questioning look on his face

"Yeah, it´s me Susan Parker, don´t tell me you did not recognize me" she said still smiling.

"Well, I have to admit I didn´t" Auggie said waving his cane that he had kept folded up in his right hand whilst Jeremy had guided him.

"Oh" Susan blushed "I didn´t realize you are…I mean that you cannot see me"

"Don´t worry, I have gotten used to it that people do not immediately realize that I am blind, at least not in certain situations" Auggie replied.

"This is my son Jeremy" Auggie said changing the topic. "We are about to go to the corner shop."

"This is where I actually come from" Susan replied before she asked "Would you like to meet with some of our former high-school classmates? Sabrina, Jerry and Greg still live here."

"Oh, I don´t know if that is such a good idea" Auggie replied "I mean, I won´t have that much time either. We are here for a family reunion and my brothers will come over and visit. We have not met in a while and I am happy to see them again"

"I understand" Susan said, anticipating that Auggie did not want to talk about the old times. "I´d better go now, Clark my husband will be home for lunch and I have not done my grocery shopping yet" Then she extended her hand, but of course that movement was lost on Auggie until Jeremy took his hand and guide it into Susan´s hand. Susan looked puzzled, she had no experience with blind people.

"Have a nice day" Auggie said unfolded his cane and started walking. He did not want further confusion. The cane was an obvious sign of his disability. So if somebody else saw him, they would immediately realize he couldn´t see.

Two minutes later Jeremy said "I can see the shop. Outside there is this huge ice cream cone in front of the door"

"Yeah, then we are in the right place" Auggie said finding the door with the tip of his cane guided by Jeremy.

Mr. Jackson stood behind the counter. He was not very tall. His grey hair was bald and he wore a blue shirt, black trousers and an apron wrapped around his waist. He was about to unpack a carton with chewing gum when Auggie and Jeremy walked in. Mr. Jackson first looked at Jeremy but when looking over to Auggie it dawned on him who was standing in front of him.

"August Anderson?" He said incredulous, putting down the carton. Then he walked around the counter and towards Auggie.

"Yeah, I am August and that is my son Jeremy" Auggie replied, offering his hand for a friendly handshake. Mr. Jackson took Auggie´s hand and looked at him with interest.

"How long has it been?" He asked "Twelve, fifteen years?"

"I guess more like fifteen" Auggie said. Jeremy was almost nine and it had been a while before he met Annie and got married.

"It is good to see you" Mr. Jackson said and with empathy in his voice he added "I heard what happened to you. Your Dad told me." And then in a more cheerful tone he said "You look good, your son looks exactly like you when you were a boy. This is why I recognized you immediately."

"Yeah, I heard he is the spitting image of me, so to speak"

Now Mr. Jackson took his spot behind the counter again and Jeremy led Auggie a bit closer.

"Let me guess, you want _Samuel´s licorice drops_, right?" Mr. Jackson asked.

"Yeah, how did you know?" Auggie smiled, surprised that the man remembered what his favourite sweets had been

"How could I forget my best customer when it comes to licorice drops?" Mr. Jackson quipped, reaching for the shelf and grabbing two little bags of licorice. Then he handed them over to Auggie, touching the back of Auggie´s hand with the licorice bag.

Auggie smiled. Finally somebody with a bit more insight he thought, before he reached into his messenger bag, taking out his wallet.

"The licorice is on me, I´ll treat you" Mr. Jackson said "It was a pleasure to see you again after such a long time"

"Thanks a lot Mr. Jackson, that is very kind of you but the next licorice will be at my expense" Auggie answered, putting back his money.

Then Jeremy led Auggie towards the door and they left.

Fifteen minutes later they were back home. "There is a blue BMW in front of the house" Jeremy commented when they walked towards the house.

"That must be Alan and Sandra, they said they´d be here around noon" Auggie replied, checking his watch by opening the glass lid and feeling the time.

"Hey Auggie" Alan had spotted his brother and his nephew from the porch, where he sat with Sandra and James. He walked towards Auggie and pulled him into a hug.

"Good to see you, so to speak" Auggie grinned reciprocating the embrace and then he heard the voice of his sister-in-law say.

"Stella, this is your uncle Auggie"

"Hi uncle Auggie" said the little girl, staring at the cane in Auggie´s hand.

"What is that long stick for?" she asked.

"That is not a stick, it´s a cane" Jeremy said assessing his little cousin from head to toe, before he looked up to his father. "My Daddy is blind, he needs a cane to walk around" Jeremy added in a tone that would have been adequate for a university professor.

"Why don´t we just go inside" Alan said and Auggie followed him after Alan had touched his hand slightly. He was one of the few persons who knew a bit more about Auggie and his special needs. Alan had been by his side throughout the rehab period after the accident and he had learned a bit more about how to help a blind person. But given the distance between DC and New York, Auggie and Alan had not met for quite a while.

Alan put Auggie´s hand on the handrail and Auggie counted the steps. Using his cane, he found the door and walked in. Alan followed him with Stella and Jeremy. Stella was still a bit puzzled, she watched Auggie sweeping his cane. The five-year old girl had never seen a blind person before and followed Auggie´s movements with huge, curious eyes.

Auggie immediately made his way to his room and put down his messenger bag and his cane. Then he opened the first little bag with licorice. Mmmh….the taste of the licorice drops was more than just familiar. It brought back a lot of memories. Auggie had never found any sort of licorice drops with the same taste. Auggie walked to the bathroom, trailing his hand along the wall. He wanted to brush his teeth. Licorice always left its brown traces on his teeth and he did not want to look ridiculous. After brushing his teeth carefully Auggie went down to the living room where Alan and his father were talking about the last soccer match.

Auggie felt his way over to an armchair and took a seat. Seconds later, the phone rang. James Anderson got up from the couch and answered the call. It was Oliver. He and his family would arrive the next day and would spend the weekend with them. Auggie and Oliver had not met for years. Of course Oliver knew that Auggie had lost his sight but they had not met since Auggie had gone blind.

The weekend with the Anderson clan promised to be exciting and Auggie did not know what to expect.


	20. Chapter 20

Annie and Auggie family and home part 20

Gladys Anderson enjoyed the family reunion. She rarely saw three of her five sons at the same time. But of most of all, she enjoyed having Auggie around after her youngest son had avoided coming to Glencoe for so long.

James was heating the grill with charcoal whilst Gladys, Annie, Jessica and Sandra were getting everything from the kitchen and laid the table. Alan had suggested to postpone the barbecue until Oliver´s arrival and now everyone enjoyed the summer weather in the garden. Jeremy, Stella and Claudia played, whilst Samuel, the youngest Anderson member was sleeping in his baby-cart.

Auggie sat in a rocking chair on the porch and listened to the barbecue preparations . Alan and Oliver had gone to the supermarket close-by to get some beer and lemonade for the kids. In moments like these Auggie felt the whole weight of his blindness. At work in Langley everything was different. He had a job to do and he was good at it. Everybody knew about his capabilities and he was valued and appreciated by Joan and his colleagues.

Coming to Glencoe however was something else. Being with his family, meant to share things. And in these moments Auggie often felt like his blindness excluded him, separated him from the rest of his family. He could not look at the photos that Oliver had taken during his vacation, he could not see the picture that Stella had drawn and he couldn´t see his baby nephew unless he could hold him in his arms. In Langley he always had so much to do, that he had barely time to think about his inability to see. His job was challenging and for most things he did not need any help.

Apart from Alan, nobody knew what he did for a living. The rest of the family just assumed that he worked for the government authorities in an IT department. This wasn´t even a lie. The CIA was an authority, closely connected to the government. But of course, it was a very unusual one with unusual working hours and unusual working conditions.

Whilst Auggie was still immersed into his own world of sounds around him, Stella approached with a book in her hands.

"Uncle Auggie, could you read that to me please?" She asked and put the book on Auggie´s lap.

Auggie felt for the book and replied "I am sorry , but I cannot read that book. I cannot see"

"But Jeremy said that you could read stories to him" Stella insisted.

"Yes, that is right but I need special books that I can read with my hands"

"How can you read with your hands? " The 5-year old girl asked

"Well, I can read with little dots printed on paper. And there are story books for children of that type. I used to read these books to Jeremy when he was not at school yet"

Jeremy and Claudia had watched Auggie talking to Stella and Claudia had hopped off the swing that was still hanging from that huge chestnut tree in the garden. Now the two kids also walked over to Auggie and Stella.

"What are you talking about" Jeremy asked when he had taken the last stair to the porch and walked towards his father.

"Your daddy says he can read with his fingers" Stella said, still a bit incredulous

"Of course he can" Jeremy said with pride in his voice. "Blind people can read with their hands and I can, too. My dad taught me how to read Braille"

"What is Braille?" Claudia asked.

"The dots on paper are called Braille" Jeremy explained and when you touch them with your fingers you can read. If you like I´m gonna show you. I got a book with me that is in print and Braille. It is the story of Buddy the Penguin and his friends at the North Pole. My daddy has read that story to me so often"

"Could you bring us the book" Auggie asked "Stella wants to hear a story and I could read to her while you play with Claudia"

"I ´ll be back in a second" Jeremy walked to the door and ran up the stairs to his room and grabbed the book. Then he put it onto Auggie´s lap. Auggie felt for the first page and started reading.

"_Buddy was the youngest penguin of a penguin colony at the North Pole. His parents spent a lot of time out in the sea hunting for fish that they could eat whilst Buddy played games with his penguin friends….."_

Now, not only Stella was listening, Jeremy and Claudia also had taken a seat on a chair and listened to the penguin story that Auggie read, sliding his fingertips across the book pages. He enjoyed reading to the kids because those stories sometimes distracted him a bit and he forgot for a while that he couldn´t see.

Sandra looked over to Auggie and the kids whilst laying the table. She had not seen her brother-in-law for a while and she had not assumed that Auggie had such a way with kids.

"The kids love him" she said smiling and Gladys replied "Yeah, he is great with kids. I have seen that a couple of times when we visited DC"

Moments later, Alan and Oliver returned. They had bought beer, white wine for the ladies and lemonade for the kids. The steaks and sausages were already sizzling on the grill and Auggie took in the smell of the meat whilst reading to the kids.

Oliver and Alan brought the drinks into the house and filled the fridge with the bottles.

When Auggie had finished reading the story, the first steaks were ready and everyone took their seat at the table. Jeremy grabbed Auggie´s hand and led him to the table. Auggie felt for the back of the chair and sat down. He slowly assessed the table, feeling for his plate, the napkin and the cutlery in front of him. The table in the shade of the old and huge chestnut tree was nicely arranged with colourful napkins and there was potato salad, tuna salad, cucumber, tomato salad and a number of sauces and dips with and without garlic.

"Do you want some potato salad? "Annie asked

"Yeah, and if there is some ketchup I would like to have some, too with my steak" Auggie replied.

Annie took her husband´s plate and added some potato salad before she put some ketchup onto Auggie´s steak.

Jeremy was already chewing on his first sausage. He and the other two kids sat together at the end of the table and the baby was still asleep in its baby cart.

"So how is it going in DC?" Oliver asked looking over to Auggie

"It is going great" Annie replied "We have a nice house and a garden and Jeremy will already be in 3rd grade after the summer break.

"I guess we should visit some time Jessica said, looking over to Oliver

"It would be a pleasure to have you visit us" Auggie said, wiping his mouth with his napkin.

"Are you still working in the same office Auggie?" Oliver asked

"Yeah, I do. Things haven´t changed. I like my job, the pay is good and Annie and I have some nice colleagues"

_If he only knew what we do_ Annie thought by herself, remembering how much effort it had required to keep the truth about her real job hidden from Danielle and her family.

The conversation among the family went back and forth until Sandra got up from the table. Baby Samuel had woken up and wailed because he had gotten hungry. Quietly Sandra withdrew to the porch, opening her blouse to breastfeed the baby.

Since he could not see, Auggie hadn´t really got acquainted with Baby Samuel and so he was happy when Sandra returned after a while and asked him

"Do you want to hold Sam for a while?"

"Yeah, of course"

Sandra put the baby into Auggie´s open arms and Auggie slowly explored the baby with the sensitive fingertips of his left hand whilst holding the baby with his right. He touched the soft skin of the baby face, gently touched the lips and finally felt for the soft hair of the child.

"He is so sweet" Auggie said

Samuel looked up to Auggie with huge, blue baby eyes and grabbed Auggie´s finger to suck on it.

"Hey baby boy, are you still hungry? " Auggie smiled and took in the typical baby scent. A mixture of baby powder, baby cream and milk. The smell reminded him of the time when Jeremy had been a baby and toddler.

"You and the baby make a perfect pair" Alan joked "what about you and Annie having a second child?"

"Well, I have to talk that over with my wife first, she has to do the greatest part of the job" Auggie grinned

"Did I hear my name?" Annie said, returning from the kitchen where she, Sandra, Jessica and Gladys had gone to in order to get the apple cake for dessert.

"Yeah, we were talking about you and Auggie having a second baby" Alan said

"How nice that you intend to include me into your plans, Annie said and grinned, while she touched Auggie´s shoulder with her right hand.

"Did you change Jeremy´s diapers and did you feed him when he was still a baby" Oliver asked

He still could not imagine that his blind brother was capable of doing all that

"Of course I did, or do you think I couldn´t do that because I am blind?"

"Well…I mean….these things must be a lot harder when you cannot see" Oliver replied

"Everything is more difficult when you are blind but life goes on, giving up isn´t an option" was all Auggie had to say.

"This is what I like about you so much, you´re not a coward" Oliver said with admiration in his voice. He could not imagine living a life without eyesight. He felt like his younger brother was a hero and not only because he had been a soldier in Iraq.

The Anderson family spent an enjoyable evening and when they finally all went to bed it was already past midnight.

Annie was still sound asleep in her husband´s arms when both woke by the sound of Auggie´s cell phone

_Incoming call Joan Campbell, incoming call Joan Campbell…. _

The phone announced and Auggie felt for his Iphone on the nightstand next to him. It had to be important when Joan called him so early in the morning.

Auggie tapped the screen twice, taking the call and could barely understand a word

The usually cool and well contained Joan Campbell was crying so that Auggie could barely understand what she tried to explain.

"Arthur had an accident" she sobbed "Auggie, I need you to come back to Langley and run the DPD for me. I don´t know who I could trust with this job, and besides, most of the others are on vacation and out of the country, please Auggie, come back to DC and help me out!"

"Oh my God, what happened?" Auggie was appalled

"He was about to cross the street when a car did not observe the red lights and ran over him. He is still in ICU and I don´t know when he will wake up again. I need to be with him and therefore I need your help"

"You can count on me Joan" Auggie promised. He and Joan had a relation that went beyond the usual boss-employee relation. Auggie did not hesitate for a second. If Joan was in trouble he would help her and he was sure Annie would understand.

"I ´ll be back in DC tomorrow night and back in the office on Wednesday"

"I appreciate your support so much" Joan said between two sobs. "Thank you for being so understanding"

"That´s what friends are for" Auggie replied before he tapped the screen again and ended the call.

"What´s going on" Annie asked. She had been listening to the phone conversation and was concerned.

"We need to go back to DC today, Arthur had an accident and Joan wants me to run the DPD for her for a while"

"Let´s have breakfast and pack up" Annie replied. One of the things she liked about her husband was that he was a reliable friend even if it meant that they had to change their own plans.

An hour and a half later Annie, Auggie and Jeremy were on their way back to DC.


	21. Chapter 21

Annie and Auggie family and home part 21

Beep beep beep …it is 6:00 am…..beep beep beep….it is 6:00 am….

Auggie felt for the button of his talking alarm clock and the annoying voice stopped. Annie stirred in bed beside him and asked with a still very sleepy voice

"Do we have to get up already?"

"I have to, you can stay in bed" Auggie replied and walked over to the bathroom to take a shower.

Ten minutes later he emerged again, wrapped into a white towel and slid the door of the closet open. He felt for the clothes tags and took out a white shirt with short sleeves, a grey vest and a pair of dark-grey jeans.

He dressed himself carefully and then he walked down into the kitchen where the coffee was already brewing. He had set the timer of the machine so that his first caffeine dose of the day would be ready soon. Auggie threw two slices of bread into the toaster, got some jam and honey from the fridge and set everything on the kitchen counter. Shortly after, the coffee was ready and Auggie had a quick breakfast before he heard the honking horn of the car that would take him to Langley.

Arriving at the CIA, he went straight away to Joan´s office. He knocked on her door and entered. Joan Campbell was sitting behind her desk. Her eyes were red and surrounded by dark circles, an evidence of a serious sleep deficit over the last days.

This was one of the few occasions when she felt relieved that Auggie was blind and could not see what she looked like.

"It is so good to see you Auggie" Joan started the conversation, getting up from her desk chair and walking over to Auggie who stood, leaning on his cane in the middle of her office.

"I told you I´d be there for you if you need me, so here I am" Auggie felt for Joan´s shoulder and patted it slightly.

" I really appreciate that you sacrificed your vacation to help me"

Auggie could hear it in her voice that she was on the verge of tears. He had rarely seen Joan so sad and helpless.

"I need you to run the DPD for the next couple of days. I will be at the hospital a lot and I cannot focus on my job, knowing that my husband needs me. I have already sent you a list of all important tasks for the next week by e-mail. There was not enough time to have the files translated into Braille but you should be fine when the system reads it to you. Of course you can call me any time if a real emergency case arises"

"Thank you so much" And with these words Joan pulled Auggie into a hug before she got out a hanky, blew her nose and took a seat behind her desk again.

Auggie got the hint, turned and walked out of the office, sweeping his cane back and forth. He would be in charge for the week ahead and he was flattered that Joan trusted him so much.

Five minutes later, Auggie was back at his desk. He booted the desktop computer and listened to the first messages he had received. Soon he was immersed into his daily routine again.

Joan Campbell stood on the corridor of the hospital. She was waiting for the doctor to arrive. She wanted to know how Arthur had spent the night and what was going to happen next.

Two minutes later the surgeon appeared.

"Mrs. Campbell?"

"Yeah that would be me" Joan replied

"The operation yesterday night went well, we have to wait until your husband wakes up to see how he reacts. I cannot give you more details. We just have to be patient and see how everything will develop in the next 24 hours"

"Can I see him?"

"Of course, the nurse will show you to his room"

A bit later, a young, blonde nurse appeared and accompanied Joan to the room at the ICU unit.

Joan was scared and could barely hide her exasperation when she saw her husband in that hospital bed. He was pale, his head was bandaged and he had an IV in his right arm. The beeping sound of the heart monitor was the only sound and Arthur´s breathing was shallow but steady.

Joan took a seat on the chair at the bedside and took Arthur ´s hand into hers.

"You have to wake up soon, darling" she whispered, her eyes filled with tears of sadness and concern. Her relationship had been in a crisis a couple of times and they had gone to counselling but now the past was water under the bridge. The only thing that counted was that Arthur would wake up and recover as soon as possible.

After a few minutes Joan fell asleep. The last two days had taken their toll on her and she woke up half an hour later, when she felt Arthur moving his hand that was still in hers.

"What is going on, where am I" she heard her husband ask when she opened her eyes.

"Arthur….oh my God,….Darling …you are awake…." Joan was overwhelmed but seconds later her feeling of concern was back when Arthur asked

"Why is it so dark in here?"

"Dark?" Joan asked with a puzzled look on her face and then it dawned on her that Arthur could not see.

She immediately let go of Arthur´s hand, ran out of the room calling "doctor, doctor !"

A minute later, the doctor appeared. He checked Arthur´s reflexes and looked into Arthur´s eyes"

"We have to make an MRI scan he said and called the nurse"

Fifteen minutes later Arthur was in the MRI room. He was still tired and weak but he realized what was going on with him. He was scared because he could only make out vague shapes and the difference between light and darkness.

"What is going on with me doctor?" Arthur Campbell asked after the MRI scan was concluded

"You have suffered a serious head injury Mr. Campbell. There is a swelling around your optic nerve that interferes with your eyesight. We will have to wait for the swelling to decrease. And if it decreases, you will have your sight back. Partly or completely"

"What do you mean by **IF** it decreases" Arthur asked. He was devastated by the idea to lose his sight. "Does it mean you cannot be sure that my sight will return?"

For the first time in his life the strong and tough Arthur Campbell was defeated. The prospect to lose his vision scared him, and all of a sudden he felt something like a bond with Auggie Anderson. He and Auggie had never been best friends and more than just once, Arthur had scolded Auggie for his initiative and unsanctioned missions but now he started seeing all of that in a different light. Auggie was blind and despite his handicap he was an excellent operative and a valuable asset for the CIA.

"You have to be patient Mr. Campbell" was all the doctor could say before the nurse appeared and pushed Arthur in his bed back to the hospital room at the ICU ward.

Joan was appalled and concerned after she had talked to the doctor. She could not imagine how Arthur would deal with the loss of sight if the swelling did not decrease. Now more than ever, she needed Auggie, he was the only one who could understand her. He had gone through something very similar years ago. She needed to talk to him as soon as possible.

Therefore she was grateful when the nurse said to her "Mrs. Campbell, your husband needs to rest now."

She kissed Arthur on his cheeks and left. But she did not drive home. Instead she made her way to Langley. She needed to talk to Auggie.

When Joan returned to Langley Auggie was not in his office. It was around noon, so Joan suspected that he had gone to the cafeteria for a break. Arriving at the cafeteria, Joan scanned the room, then she saw Auggie sitting at a table sipping on a cup of coffee.

"Hey Auggie" she greeted him

"Joan?" Auggie lifted his brows. He was surprised "I thought you were not coming in the next couple of days. Or don´t you trust me and my abilities anymore" He quipped

"No, it is not about the job, it is private this time" Joan replied, taking a seat next to Auggie who was now munching on his cheese and ham sandwich.

Joan swallowed and cleared her throat before she continued talking.

"Arthur has suffered a head injury. The injury has provoked something that the doctor called a cranial swelling. Whatever that may be"

Auggie listened, knowing, anticipating what was going to come. This story reminded him of his own and he was familiar with the medical terms. He slowly reached across the table, finding Joan´s hand and squeezed it a bit.

"Arthur says he can´t see and the doctor is not sure when the pressure on Arthur´s optic nerve will decrease and subside…..Auggie….Arthur is blind!" Joan´s last words were barely audible, suffocated by a sob.

Now Auggie couldn´t help it. Of course Joan was still his boss but this was a special situation. He reached for Joan´s shoulder and pulled her into an embrace. Joan rested her head on Auggie´s chest and cried. She was exhausted, desperate and sad. She did not know what was expecting her.

"Do you want me to talk to him?" Auggie asked after Joan´s sobs hat stopped and she had lifted her head, blown her nose and wiped the tears off her cheeks.

"Yeah, I was going to ask you that. Thank you" she said and squeezed Auggie´s hand grateful for his help.

A quarter past five p.m. Auggie shut down his computer, took his folding cane out of the first desk drawer and left. He had decided to see Arthur before he went home. The cab driver took him to the Memorial Hospital and accompanied him to the reception desk.

"Thank you" Auggie said turning to the receptionist

"How can I help you Sir?"

"I am here to see Arthur Campbell. Can you tell me where I can find him?"

The receptionist typed on the keyboard of her computer searching for the name

"Third floor, Ward A5" she said "Do you need help to get there?"

"Yeah, I would appreciate some help" Auggie replied giving the receptionist a smile

The receptionist took her phone and made a call. Two minutes later a nurse appeared and offered Auggie her arm.

Joan was sitting on a chair next to Arthur´s bed when Auggie walked in, holding the arm of a nurse.

"I am so grateful you have come" Joan said, rising from her chair. She touched Auggie´s hand and led him towards the bed.

"Hello Auggie" Arthur said, turning his head a bit to the right where Joan stood with Auggie who was leaning on his cane.

"I am sorry about your accident" Auggie said "I guess I can imagine what you are going through now"

"I guess you have something to talk about" Joan said, taking Auggie´s hand, putting it on the back of a chair. Auggie got the hint, folded his cane, felt for the seat and sat down.

For a few seconds there was an awkward silence in the hospital room. Both men were usually not very close and Auggie did not know how to address the problem without overstepping the invisible boundaries between him and his boss.

Then, Arthur broke the silence "I am glad you could come" he started the conversation "I think I know now what you have gone through when you returned from your Iraq mission. How can you live like that every day?"

Auggie searched for the right words. He did not want to give too much away of himself and after all Arthur was his boss.

"I have gotten used to it after a while. There is still a lot you can do without seeing. Things just require a bit more time and preparation. But you should not worry too much. There is still a possibility that you will get your vision back. And if you need help I will be there to answer your questions." Auggie said.

"Thank you"

The usually cool and tough Arthur Campbell was suddenly overwhelmed by his feelings and he had to fight the tears that stung in his eyes. He needed to get through this, with or without help. Just like Auggie, Arthur did not like asking for help. But this was a special situation and he had to deal with it, whether he liked it or not.

Auggie spent another 10 minutes with Arthur talking about different things, trying to distract him a bit. Then he unfolded his cane again and felt his way to the door. Standing on the corridor, a nurse spotted him and accompanied him to the exit, where the taxi Auggie had called was already waiting.

After his job at the rehab centre Auggie was again confronted with his own destiny and relived the things he had gone through after Iraq.


End file.
